ONE Responds to absence of UK pledge at Global Fund Conference

New York, 21st September: Today in New York, the 7th replenishment for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria raised US$14.25 billion. Although this is the biggest total raised at such a replenishment event, the Global Fund is still US$3.75 billion short of their replenishment target (1). 

This shortfall is in part due to the decision of the British government to defer announcing its financial commitment, having only just come out of its period of mourning of the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Instead, Development Minister Vicky Ford noted that the UK ‘Will continue to be a strong supporter and contributor to the Global Fund’ and stated that the UK pledge will be announced ‘in the coming weeks.’  

The UK government now has until 31st October to convert this statement of support into a financial commitment. A strong pledge from the UK is critical to filling the gap that the Global Fund now faces and ensuring that it has what it needs to get the fight against the three diseases back on track.

Lis Wallace, UK Policy and Advocacy Director for The ONE Campaign, said “It is understandable that the Prime Minister did not announce a pledge today but it remains essential that Britain does not step back from its key role as one of the Global Fund’s top contributors (2).”

“Our G7 partners have demonstrated that they have learned the brutal lessons of the last two years and recognise the importance of accelerating their efforts in the fight against disease (3). Liz Truss now needs to prove that she also got the memo and shares their ambition. This will be a real litmus test for her Government and whether it will continue to be at the forefront of efforts to tackle the biggest challenges facing the world.

“Failure to step up wouldn’t just be a sign of Britain playing a smaller role on the world stage – it will have a real impact on our ability to end these diseases for good. It is not too late for the Government to get this right. There is still time to stand shoulder to shoulder with our friends around the world and deliver the crucial investment that will make people everywhere safer.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

1. To date, the Global Fund has saved 50 million lives. Its seventh replenishment set out a goal to raise at least US$18 billion to save an additional 20 million lives over the next three years.
2. At the last replenishment in 2019, the UK contributed a total of £1.4 billion to the Global Fund. According to ONE’s new analysis, maintaining this amount instead of the 30% required increase may put 833,000 lives at risk. But if the UK were to significantly cut its contribution to £1 billion, this could increase to 1.7 million lives.
3. The United States, Canada, Germany, Japan, and the European Commission have all committed to the 30% increase requested by the Global Fund. France has committed to increasing their pledge by 23%.

For media enquiries, please contact Emilia Micunovic via [email protected] or call 07881370524. Lis Wallace, Director UK Policy and Advocacy, and Romilly Greenhill, UK Director are available for briefing and comment by request.