(WASHINGTON, DC) - The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announced in January that it is contributing $5 million to the Cater Center to support the Carter Center's Guinea Worm Eradication Program in Africa. The contribution will be distributed through the Saudi Fund for Development.

The Kingdom has a long record of donations to the Center’s Program, including a $2 million donation made last July.

According to the Carter Center, when the Program began in 1986, there were an estimated 3.5 million cases of Guinea worm disease in 20 countries in Africa and Asia. By 2008, there were fewer than 5,000 cases in six African countries. The estimated final case totals for 2009 is fewer than 3,500.