US Commits $4.6 Billion To Global Fund As Leaders Rally Support At G20 Summit

Nations and major global companies stepped forward on Friday to commit fresh funding to the Global Fund to Fight HIV, Tuberculosis and Malaria, as leaders gathered on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Johannesburg.

The replenishment drive aims to secure an $18 billion budget to boost global health responses over the next funding cycle.

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South Africa and the United Kingdom co-hosted the Global Fund’s eighth replenishment summit, which drew high-level stakeholders and urgent calls for renewed international solidarity.

United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed cautioned that the United States’ recent withdrawal of funding from UN agencies and developing nations could place vulnerable communities at heightened risk.

US Pledge Boosts Funding Drive At Critical Moment

Despite earlier funding concerns, the US pledged $4.6 billion to the Global Fund via a video message delivered at the summit. The commitment delivered a significant boost to the replenishment effort.

Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi emphasised that Africa remained “central to the future of global health” but stressed that the continent sought shared responsibility rather than charity.

“It’s about investing in health security, economic resilience and long-term self-reliance and recognising the disease we are fighting, the vectors that kill, know no borders,” he said.

The Global Fund estimates that every dollar contributed generates a $19 return in health and economic benefits.

Experts Warn Of Threats To Progress Against HIV, TB And Malaria

World Health Organisation Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus warned that abrupt and unplanned reductions in health aid this year risked reversing gains made in fighting HIV, tuberculosis and malaria.

“But we also face significant challenges with increasing drug resistance, gaps in access, mis- and disinformation, breeding mistrust and the need to integrate interventions,” he added.

Global Fund Executive Director Peter Sands addressed the urgency of sustained funding, noting the promise of a groundbreaking HIV drug, lenacapivir, which he said could reshape the trajectory of a disease that has claimed 44 million lives globally.

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