Global health fund in massive shortfall, says Christian Aid
-03/12/05
The Global Fund t
Global health fund in massive shortfall, says Christian Aid
-03/12/05
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is facing a severe financial shortfall which is threatening new programmes in 2006 and 2007 says UK-based international development agency Christian Aid.
The Fund is a dedicated United Nations initiative established to increase dramatically the resources available to fight three of the world’s most devastating diseases, and to direct those resources to areas of greatest need.
It held a donor conference in London in September 2005 looking for 7.1 billion US dollars to cover anticipated needs of the next two years. But just over half – 3.5 billion US dollars ñ was actually pledged.
There is currently no money for programmes the Fund was hoping to support in 2006 and 2007. In fact, the Fund has a 300 million US dollar funding gap simply to complete its last round of grants.
ìThis is a shocking indictment of the rich countriesí commitment to the fight against HIV,î declared Dr Rachel Baggaley, head of the HIV Unit at Christian Aid, last week.
She went on: ìIn July 2005 we had grand statements from the G8 summit which committed them to universal HIV treatment by 2010. There is no way we are going to even begin to achieve this if the leaders of the richest countries do not deliver on their much trumpeted promises.î
Dr Baggaley added: ìWe are not going to make any headway in alleviating poverty if we do not tackle HIV at the same time. So many countries are being decimated by HIV. More than three million people died of HIV last year and there were nearly 2.5 million new infections in sub-Saharan Africa alone.î
The Global Fund has had its successes. It has helped provide 220,000 people with antiretroviral drugs, 600,000 people with TB treatment, more than one million people with malaria treatment and more than three million insecticide-treated mosquito nets.
It has approved 350 grants to 128 countries amounting to US$ 4.4 billion in its first five rounds of funding. But so much more could be done if the full funding were available.
When the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, announced the creation of the Fund in April 2001, he said that 7-10 billion US dollars would be needed each year to effectively combat HIV alone.
The latest figures from UNAIDS are sobering, says Christian Aid. The number of people now living with HIV has doubled in the last ten years; it now stands at 40 million. It says that, if treatment and prevention were properly funded, 55% of new infections expected in sub-Saharan Africa by 2020 could be prevented.
According to UNAIDS 15 billion US dollars is needed each year to provide a basic package of prevention, treatment, and care and support services. To date global spending on HIV is only 3 billion US dollars.
[Also on Ekklesia: Faith groups prepare for World AIDS Day; UN and churches push for more AIDS drugs; World leaders failing global poor, says Christian Aid; Gordon Brown’s Africa debt action inspired by church; G8 urged to put money where their mouth is]
Global health fund in massive shortfall, says Christian Aid
-03/12/05
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is facing a severe financial shortfall which is threatening new programmes in 2006 and 2007 says UK-based international development agency Christian Aid.
The Fund is a dedicated United Nations initiative established to increase dramatically the resources available to fight three of the world’s most devastating diseases, and to direct those resources to areas of greatest need.
It held a donor conference in London in September 2005 looking for 7.1 billion US dollars to cover anticipated needs of the next two years. But just over half – 3.5 billion US dollars – was actually pledged.
There is currently no money for programmes the Fund was hoping to support in 2006 and 2007. In fact, the Fund has a 300 million US dollar funding gap simply to complete its last round of grants.
‘This is a shocking indictment of the rich countries’ commitment to the fight against HIV,’ declared Dr Rachel Baggaley, head of the HIV Unit at Christian Aid, last week.
She went on: ‘In July 2005 we had grand statements from the G8 summit which committed them to universal HIV treatment by 2010. There is no way we are going to even begin to achieve this if the leaders of the richest countries do not deliver on their much trumpeted promises.’
Dr Baggaley added: ‘We are not going to make any headway in alleviating poverty if we do not tackle HIV at the same time. So many countries are being decimated by HIV. More than three million people died of HIV last year and there were nearly 2.5 million new infections in sub-Saharan Africa alone.’
The Global Fund has had its successes. It has helped provide 220,000 people with antiretroviral drugs, 600,000 people with TB treatment, more than one million people with malaria treatment and more than three million insecticide-treated mosquito nets.
It has approved 350 grants to 128 countries amounting to US$ 4.4 billion in its first five rounds of funding. But so much more could be done if the full funding were available.
When the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, announced the creation of the Fund in April 2001, he said that 7-10 billion US dollars would be needed each year to effectively combat HIV alone.
The latest figures from UNAIDS are sobering, says Christian Aid. The number of people now living with HIV has doubled in the last ten years; it now stands at 40 million. It says that, if treatment and prevention were properly funded, 55% of new infections expected in sub-Saharan Africa by 2020 could be prevented.
According to UNAIDS 15 billion US dollars is needed each year to provide a basic package of prevention, treatment, and care and support services. To date global spending on HIV is only 3 billion US dollars.
[Also on Ekklesia: Faith groups prepare for World AIDS Day; UN and churches push for more AIDS drugs; World leaders failing global poor, says Christian Aid; Gordon Brown’s Africa debt action inspired by church; G8 urged to put money where their mouth is]