President Biden signals a $6 billion US pledge for the Seventh Replenishment and offers to match $1 for every $2 contributed by other donors

Per U.S. law, U.S. funding for the Global Fund cannot exceed one-third of total contributions from all donors to the Global Fund. This limit serves as a matching challenge for other donors. President Biden’s intended pledge of US$6 billion for the Seventh Replenishment is a clear signal to other donors that they will also need to step up to take full advantage of the U.S. commitment.

President Biden will host the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment fundraising conference later this year. The Global Fund’s target for the Seventh Replenishment is to raise at least US$18 billion to fund its next three-year cycle of grants. A successful Seventh Replenishment will save 20 million lives, cut HIV, TB and malaria deaths by 64% and strengthen health systems and community networks to reinforce pandemic preparedness.

“The United States has been a tremendous leader in global health since the Global Fund was founded 20 years ago and has been a longstanding champion in the fight against HIV, TB and malaria through PEPFAR, USAID, PMI and its steadfast support to the Global Fund,” said Peter Sands, Executive Director of the Global Fund. “We hope that other donors will follow the lead of the United States to ensure that we fully leverage U.S. funding for the Seventh Replenishment cycle and reach our target of at least US$18 billion.”

In the 20 years since the Global Fund was created, the partnership has saved 44 million lives and reduced the combined death rate from HIV, TB and malaria by more than half. But the Global Fund’s most recent Results Report revealed significant progress has been lost because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is why the Global Fund’s resource needs are higher than for the Sixth Replenishment.

“In the face of the catastrophic impact of COVID-19 on the fight against HIV, TB and malaria, the choice is stark: We either increase funding, or we abandon hope of finally defeating these epidemics by 2030,” said Sands. “We must increase support to countries to build more resilient, sustainable and inclusive systems for health. This is crucial for ending HIV, TB and malaria, defeating COVID-19 and protecting people from future infectious disease threats around the world.”

The United States is the largest donor to the Global Fund, having provided – thanks to unwavering bipartisan support – a cumulative total of nearly US$20 billion since the Global Fund partnership was created 20 years ago. For the current three-year funding cycle, the U.S. is on track to provide US$1.56 billion per year. In addition, in 2021, the U.S. committed an additional US$3.5 billion to the Global Fund’s emergency COVID-19 Response Mechanism to help low- and middle-income countries respond to the pandemic, mitigate its impact on HIV, TB and malaria services, and make urgent improvements to health systems. This extremely generous funding, combined with contributions from other donors, has enabled the Global Fund to serve as the largest provider of grant support to low- and middle-income countries for all of the non-vaccine facets of the COVID-19 response, including tests, treatments, and personal protective equipment (PPE).

In 2019, President Emmanuel Macron of France hosted the Global Fund’s Sixth Replenishment in Lyon, France, which raised an unprecedented US$14 billion in support of Global Fund programs and attracted additional donors to the cause.

Source: Global Fund