Cannabis Science (CBIS) Joins Forces With The Constituency For Africa (CFA) To Focus On Improving Healthcare Infrastructure In Africa In 2015
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., Dec. 9, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Cannabis Science, Inc. (OTCQB: CBIS), a U.S. Company specializing in cannabis formulation-based drug development and related consulting, is pleased to announce its President & CEO, Mr. Raymond C. Dabney, along with CBIS's Senior Scientific Advisor, Dr. Roscoe M. Moore, Jr., have initiated a partnership between CBIS and the Constituency for Africa (CFA) to help improve the healthcare and health-related education infrastructure in Africa. The CFA, a Washington based education and advocacy organization, will focus attention on improving the healthcare infrastructure in as part of its 2015 strategy. Founded in 1990, and now in its 25th year of operation, the CFA has emerged as a leading organization for mobilizing public and private support for Africa in Washington, DC. Please visit http://www.cfa-network.org for more information.
The CFA is planning to launch this African healthcare infrastructure initiative in February with a stakeholders' forum in Washington. The forum will bring together senior officials and leaders in the African Union and African Diplomatic Corps, Obama Administration, Congress, World Bank, private sector, and the Diaspora. A high-level advisory committee of experts will lead this effort with a goal of dramatically improving the healthcare infrastructure across the African Continent. CBIS's Dr. Moore, who also serves as the CFA's Interim Chairman, will co-chair this group. Dr. Moore has an extensive background stemming from his government service, including as Assistant U.S. Surgeon General during the George H. W. Bush Administration.
Cannabis Science Inc., President & CEO, Mr. Raymond C. Dabney will also serve as a co-chair of this new CFA Health Roundtable. Cannabis Science, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, is dedicated to the discovery and development of cannabis-based medicines. CBIS will be using its expertise in cannabinoid research with the CFA's multiple strengths and relationships to help further the cause in Africa of treating diseases and symptoms of diseases including cancer, relief from severe pain, and some AIDS-related illnesses. Through this effort, CBIS and the CFA will focus on educational systems and the overall healthcare infrastructure of the Continent.
Dr. Moore stated, "The CFA enjoys direct access to a number of the key opinion leaders from African leaders to U.S. lawmakers to international development organizations. Most importantly, the CFA is highly connected to a range of Diaspora leaders and experts in healthcare and other fields, who have much to offer in the effort to help Africa. We can effectively bring these voices together to generate the needed momentum and investment to dramatically improve the healthcare infrastructure over the coming years."
CFA's President and CEO, Mr. Melvin Foote, believes the time is right to launch an initiative to strengthen healthcare in Africa, stating, "The Ebola epidemic has been a tremendous wake-up call about the weak state of healthcare infrastructure in the countries strickened by the disease, particularly in the midst of the AIDS crisis. As Ebola rapidly spread to a number of countries in and outside of Africa, the entire world has finally realized that we are all at risk if we continue to ignore the plight of people in Africa, as any disease is only a plane ride away. We are extremely welcoming of Mr. Dabney and Cannabis Science's aggressive leadership."
Since the summer, the Ebola crisis has resulted in more than 6,000 deaths in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, and has had a devastating effect on the economies in these countries, as well as other affected countries in the region. Schools have been closed, hospitals have become non-functional and civil society has ground to a halt. The urgent need for a much improved health infrastructure in the region and across Africa, has never been so apparent as it is now. It is clear that Ebola has been able to spread so quickly in and around urban areas in the region because of the lack of disease surveillance, of proper training of healthcare workers, and of basic medicines and needed medical technologies.
The CFA was a pioneer in the battle against HIV and AIDS 14 years ago. Under the leadership of the then Chairman of the Board, former US Congressman Ron Dellums, the CFA sized up the pandemic early and went on the offense and pressed for a global response, proposing an "AIDS Marshall Plan" to address the various aspects of the pandemic. The concept of CFA's AIDS Marshall Plan was a precursor to President George W. Bush's landmark humanitarian program in 2003, PEPFAR, The US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. The massive funding increases have, among other things, made critical anti-retroviral therapies widely available in Africa, saving millions of lives.
About Cannabis Science, Inc.
Cannabis Science, Inc., takes advantage of its unique understanding of metabolic processes to provide novel treatment approaches to a number of illnesses for which current treatments and understanding remain unsatisfactory. Cannabinoids have an extensive history dating back thousands of years, and currently, there are a growing number of peer-reviewed scientific publications that document the underlying biochemical pathways that cannabinoids modulate. The Company works with leading experts in drug development, medicinal characterization, and clinical research to develop, produce, and commercialize novel therapeutic approaches for the treatment for illnesses caused by infections as well as for age-related illness. Our initial focus is on skin cancers and neurological conditions.
Forward-Looking Statements
This Press Release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Act of 1934. A statement containing words such as "anticipate," "seek," intend," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "project," "plan," or similar phrases may be deemed "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Some or all of the events or results anticipated by these forward-looking statements may not occur. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include the future U.S. and global economies, the impact of competition, and the Company's reliance on existing regulations regarding the use and development of cannabis-based drugs. Cannabis Science, Inc., does not undertake any duty nor does it intend to update the results of these forward-looking statements.