Global Fund to Fight AIDS,
Tuberculosis, and Malaria
Background
According to estimates published last
year in the journal Science, $7 billion to $10 billion are
needed annually in the developing world to prevent new HIV
infections, care for people living with HIV and AIDS, and
provide limited treatment with antiretroviral drugs. In
addition to these costs, it has been estimated that an additional
$2 billion are needed to address tuberculosis and malaria
each year.
The new Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis,
and Malaria was established in 2002 to dramatically increase
available resources to fight three of the world's most devastating
diseases and to rapidly direct those resources to effective
prevention, care, and treatment programs in the areas most
urgently in need of assistance. The Global Fund is intended
to complement existing assistance programs by attracting,
managing, and disbursing additional resources. The Global
Fund is an independent public-private partnership that will
share resources and expertise among countries and between
the public and private sectors with the goal of reducing
infection, illness, and death due to HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis,
and malaria.
Resources disbursed by the Global Fund
are focused on the most vulnerable communities with the
greatest disease burden. The Fund's grant process helps
to ensure that recipients work in partnership with their
communities, government, civil society, and those individuals
affected by HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. The grant
process emphasizes transparency, accountability, and achievement
of results.
United States Role
The United States, through the U.S. Agency
for International Development and the Department of Health
and Human Services, is the largest contributor to the Global
Fund and has pledged $500 million to date. In May 2001,
President Bush was the first leader to pledge to the Global
Fund. The United States is one of only two donors to make
a second pledge. In addition, the United States provided
$1 million to help the Fund with start-up operations and
loaned staff and technical support to help the Fund get
off the ground. The United States has also been involved
at a staff level in all of the Fund's technical area working
groups.
The United States is the only nation that
is increasing its bilateral funding as it increases its
pledges to the Global Fund. This year, the United States'
budget for fighting global HIV/AIDS is $1.17 billion. The
budget includes $540 million for USAID's bilateral programs
and $377 million for the Department of Health and Human
Services ($155 million for the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention and $222 million for the National Institutes
of Health).
Additional pledges to the Fund have come
from governments of developed and developing countries,
private corporations, foundations, and individuals. The
first grant proposals were approved in April 2002 to assist
58 programs in 38 countries at a value of $616 million over
two years.
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