G8 Summit AIDS Funding Pledges Still Not Enough to Fight Pandemic, U.N. Special Envoy Lewis Says

Even if the Group of Eight industrialized nations fulfilled pledges they made at their annual summit in July to increase funding for HIV/AIDS, the amount still would fall short of what is needed to fight the pandemic worldwide, U.N. Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa Stephen Lewis warned on Monday, the Financial Times reports. During the summit in Gleneagles, Scotland, leaders of the G8 nations agreed to an immediate doubling of overall aid to Africa to $50 billion annually by 2010 to fight poverty and disease on the continent. They also agreed to replenish funding for the Global Fund To Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (White, Financial Times, 9/27). However, earlier this month at the Global Fund's third and final 2005 replenishment conference in London, world leaders pledged $3.7 billion for the fund, only slightly more than half of the $7.1 billion needed for 2006 and 2007 (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 9/7). "[T]hese figures will not bring universal access to treatment," Lewis said. He added that according to UNAIDS, the fight against HIV/AIDS will require $22 billion annually by 2008, compared with $8.3 billion this year (Financial Times, 9/27).

Back to other news for September 27, 2005