Global Fund to Fight AIDS to Begin Distributing Aid Soon

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, having raised $2.1 billion in government, corporate and individual pledges, announced its first shipments of aid would reach 40 countries by the end of this year. "A quarter of the money is in the bank and it's enough to cover the first round of handouts, which should be made in the weeks ahead," Executive Director Richard Feachem said Sunday. Feachem said Haiti, Ghana, Tanzania and Sri Lanka would be among the first countries to receive aid over the next two years. Projects approved by the fund include a program of vouchers to help subsidize the sale of bed nets soaked in insecticide in Tanzania to prevent mosquito bites that can lead to malaria. The US government was the largest donor with pledges of $500 million, followed by Britain, Italy and Japan with $200 million each. Individual donors included UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, a major proponent of the fund, who pledged $100,000. Feachem said the fund would work with auditing firms "to improve oversight of donated aid money and make sure that it gets where it's most needed in a rapid way."

Back to other CDC news for October 7, 2002

Previous Updates