Citam Plus Zambia

Global Fund Donors Pledge Nearly $13 Billion to Help End Epidemics

17 September 2016

MONTREAL – At the launch of the Global Fund’s Fifth Replenishment, donors pledged over US$12.9 billion for the next three years, demonstrating extraordinary global commitment toward ending the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria for good.

Hosted by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who stressed youth engagement as a key to success in global health, the conference welcomed significantly increased pledges from several donors. Canada increased its own contribution by 23 percent, many new partners pledged for the first time, and private sector contributions more than doubled.

The Replenishment Conference raised nearly $1 billion more than the previous replenishment conference in 2013, and benefitted from participation by leaders from countries all over the world, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, and Bill Gates, Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The amount raised will save 8 million lives, avert 300 million infections, and help build resilient and sustainable systems for health. The conference is only the beginning of a three-year replenishment period, and the Global Fund will actively work to gain further contributions in the coming months and years, with strong advocacy by civil society and partners worldwide.

Programs supported by the Global Fund have saved 20 million lives since 2002, and averted 146 million new infections since 2012. The Global Fund has also helped stimulate an additional US$6 billion in domestic investments in health by low- and middle-income countries in the most recent three-year period.

“We can end these epidemics for good, if we accelerate our efforts and continue to bring in new partners,” said Prime Minister Trudeau.

Prime Minster Trudeau’s remarks at the conference embodied a spirit of compassion and commitment to work across borders and find solutions to significant global challenges, like ending AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria as epidemics.

The United States led the pledging with US$4.3 billion, approximately one-third of total funding. The United Kingdom pledged £1.1 billion, the second-largest pledge for this replenishment period; France pledged €1.08 billion, maintaining their position as the second-largest donor to the Global Fund overall.

Germany pledged €800 million, a 33 percent increase; Japan pledged US$800 million, effectively a 46 percent increase when measured in Japanese yen; Canada pledged $804 million CAD, a 23 percent increase; and the European Commission pledged €470 million, nearly a 30 percent increase. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation pledged US$600 million. Australia pledged $A220 million, a 10 percent increase. All those pledges cover the coming three-year period.

Several low- and middle-income countries that are significantly increasing their investments in health also pledged contributions to the Global Fund, to benefit the broader work to end the epidemics globally, including Kenya’s pledge of US$5 million.

Pledges from private donors and innovative financing initiatives reached US$250 million for the coming three years, more than double from the previous period.

The Global Fund is committed to achieving maximum impact with available funds, and is constantly evolving to find innovative ways to achieve even better results with available resources. Programs supported by the Global Fund partnership have put 9.2 million people on antiretroviral treatment for HIV, provided 15.1 million people with TB treatment and distributed 659 million mosquito nets to protect families from malaria.

“The Global Fund is one of the most impactful investments a donor can make in global health,” said Bill Gates, Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “The increased generosity pledged by long-standing and new donors is inspiring and will help ensure this unique partnership can continue its critical work to make the world better, safe and more equitable for all.”

The Global Fund partnership is committed to removing human rights barriers to health so that everyone can access the health services they need, particularly communities and key populations who are denied access due to stigma or discrimination. The Global Fund invests in many programs that specifically focus on the needs of women and girls, who are particularly at risk from HIV, TB and malaria, and works to address the gender inequalities that are major drivers of the spread of the three diseases. Ending the epidemics requires stronger systems for health, and breaking down the barriers that prevent people from accessing lifesaving health care.

“We have the knowledge and tools to end HIV, TB and malaria as epidemics by 2030, but we need to invest smartly and with focus to make it happen,” said Mark Dybul, Executive Director of the Global Fund. “When we work together, we can achieve more than anyone dreamed possible.”

http://www.theglobalfund.org/en/news/2016-09-17_Global_Fund_Donors_Pledge_Nearly_$13_Billion_to_Help_End_Epidemics/

Press Statement

15th September 2016

ZAMBIA SHOULD PLEDGE TO SUPPORT GLOBAL FUND

As CITAMplus Zambia, we would like to congratulate President Edgar Chagwa Lungu on his re-election as Republican President and the newly appointed Health Minister, Dr. Chitalu Chilufya.

With that said, as CITAMplus however notes that there urgent health issues the new Minister of Health should address.

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria (Global Fund) must be fully funded and we need to be focused on rallying our Zambian government and the rest of the world to come up with US$13 billion for the Global Fund, which has saved 17 million lives since 2002. The Global Fund needs that money to save an additional 8 million lives as well as prevent 300 million new infections in the next three years.

Canada is hosting the Replenishment conference on Sept. 16. Several countries have announced generous contributions. In the last few days, there have been pledges coming of African countries such as Kenya USD 5 million, Benin USD 2 million and Zimbabwe USD1 million. Zambia has an opportunity to work with leaders from across the globe to end an incredible amount of death and suffering by fully funding the Global Fund’s $13 billion request. We know how to identify, prevent and treat these diseases. The only thing left to do is choose, to decide whether we will continue making progress or squander this opportunity. We call on all of the new Minister of Health to step up, join arms, and get the job done in pledging towards the Global Fund generously.

AIDS, TB and Malaria have taken, and continue to take, an incredible toll. AIDS alone has stolen the lives of 35 million people, and continues to take 1.1 million people each year. TB takes 1.3 million lives each year, down from about 2 million per year and is the biggest infectious killer on the planet. To date, there has been a Global Fund investment of USD 883,850,928 in Zambia.

CITAMplus is an organization that focuses around policy advocacy and citizen led grassroots advocacy among other things. It is a partner of ACTION which is a partnership of locally-rooted organizations around the world that advocate for life-saving care for millions of people that are threatened by preventable diseases.

Nathan Nhlane

CITAMplus Zambia Policy and Advocacy Officer

This is a story aired on Yar FM Radio News on 2nd September 2016.

This was a story on the need to have enough support to end HIV/AIDS in Zambia by 2030.

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This is a story aired on Yar FM Radio News on 2nd and 3rd September 2016.

This was a story on the Signing of an MOU between Coalition of Zambian Women Living with HIV/AIDS (COZWHA) and Network of Zambian People living with HIV (NZP+) with AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) aimed at increasing awareness on matters regarding HIV/AIDS in the country.

 This is a story aired on Radio Phoenix News on 2nd September 2016. This was a story on the Signing of an MOU between Coalition of Zambian Women Living with HIV/AIDS (COZWHA) and Network of Zambian People living with HIV (NZP+) with AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) aimed at increasing awareness on matters regarding HIV/AIDS in the country.

This is a story aired on Power FM Radio News on 3rd September 2016. This was a story on the need to have enough support to end HIV/AIDS in Zambia by 2030.

This is a story aired on Millennium Radio News on 3rd September 2016. This was a story on the Signing of an MOU between Coalition of Zambian Women Living with HIV/AIDS (COZWHA) and Network of Zambian People living with HIV (NZP+) with AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) aimed at increasing awareness on matters regarding HIV/AIDS in the country.