Rwanda has pledged $3.2 million to the Global Fund’s 7th replenishment
President Paul Kagame has pledged the contribution of $3.2million to the 7th replenishment organized by Global Fund in order to fight against diseases including AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.
The amount of US$18 billion would save 20 million lives, cut HIV, TB and malaria deaths by 65% and strengthen health systems to reinforce pandemic preparedness.
The goal was to collect $18 billion but only $14.25 billion has been collected. Nonetheless, there are countries that have not yet contributed, including Italy and the United Kingdom.
During 7th Global Fund Replenishment meeting held in New York, chaired by the United States President Joe Biden, Kagame has pledged $ 3,250,000, a 30% increase from the last round. By supporting this program Rwanda has contributed USS 2.5 Billion to the 6th replenishment.
Rwanda has committed to contribute for this initiative during Stakeholders meeting on the Global Fund seventh Replenishment for 2024-2026, held in Kigali on May 5, 2022. For its contribution Rwanda NGO Forum on HIV/AIDS and Health Promotion (RNGOF & HP) has urged Rwandans and citizens across the globe in general to contribute to the Global Fund’s 7th replenishment.
The chairperson of that Forum (RNGOF on HIV/IDS & HP), Bernard Muramira has highlighted the role being played by Rwanda Civil Society Organizations ( CSOs) to advocate for a successful 7th Replenishment of the Global Fund and emphasized to the everyone’s contribution.
“Everyone’s contribution is needed; you and I, and someone else, our dollar, one, two and more are needed to raise the $18 billion needed,” he said.
Apart from Rwanda pledge, the United States of America has pledged to contribute ⅓ of the Global Fund’s budget. Initially, the country provided $2 billion out of its $6 billion pledge.
The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, said that his country will contribute $1.6 billion dollars, an addition to the 300 million Euros that his country pledged recently.
Germany committed to giving $3 billion while Canada pledged $1.21 billion. Many countries around the world have pledged to increase their contribution by 30%. These include Belgium, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Portugal, and Spain.
The European Union has also announced that it will increase its funding by 30%, pledging 750 million Euros to help the world’s health sector.
African countries that increased their contribution by 30% include Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, and Uganda.
Statistics from The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), show that the number of people infected with AIDS increased by 1.5 million last year.
Meanwhile, tuberculosis cases also increased, with 1.5 million deaths in 2020 alone, which is the highest number in more than 10 years. Malaria-related deaths have decreased by 47% between 2002 and 2020.
successful Replenishment would allow the partnership to:
- Save 20 million lives between 2024 and 2026, reducing the mortality rate by 64% across the three diseases by 2026, relative to 2020 levels.
- Avert more than 450 million infections or cases, reducing the incidence rate by 58% across the three diseases by 2026, relative to 2020 levels.
- Reduce the death toll across the three diseases to 950,000 in 2026, down from 2.4 million in 2020, and from 4 million in 2005.
- Catalyze the scale-up of domestic investments of up to US$59 billion toward ending the three diseases and strengthening systems for health through co-financing requirements and technical assistance on health financing.
- Reinforce systems for health and pandemic preparedness by investing approximately US$6 billion to support health care workers; strengthen laboratories, diagnostic tools, supply chain management, information and financial systems; tackle antimicrobial resistance, including drug-resistant TB; reinforce community systems; and accelerate the shift toward patient-centered, differentiated models of care.
- Yield a return on investment of 1:31 with every dollar invested in fighting the three diseases resulting in US$31 in health gains and economic returns, further contributing to the achievement of the overall SDG agenda.
In the 20 years since the Global Fund was created, the partnership has saved 44 million lives and cut the death toll from the three diseases by 40%. But the Global Fund’s Results Report revealed significant progress has been lost because of the COVID-19 pandemic and global resource needs have increased. This is why the Global Fund funding needs are higher than in 2019 for the Sixth Replenishment.
According to Global Fund, Rwanda has been part of Global Fund partnership since 2003.
During this time, significant progress has been made in the fight against HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria in the country with key achievements in the country.
Between 2010 and 2020, the number of AIDS-related deaths decreased by 59%, from approximately 5,900 in 2010 to approximately 2,500 in 2020.
The proportion of people living with HIV receiving antiretroviral drugs more than doubled, from 89,000 in 2010 to 207,000 in 2020.
Between 2010 and 2020, coverage of medication that prevents mother-to-child transmission of HIV increased from 59% to 98%.
TB mortality declined by 40% between 2012 and 2020.
During the last long-lasting insecticidal net campaign in 2019 and 2020, Rwanda successfully distributed 5.57 million nets.
In 12 districts targeted for indoor residual spraying, 99% of the population was covered.
During the 6th replenishment, the Global Fund mobilized $14.02bn that will save 16M lives and avert 234 million of new HIV, Malaria and Tuberculosis in 2021-2023.
By Deus Ntakirutimana
