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  • African Science Academy Development Initiative (ASADI) Meeting in Ghana The fifth annual international conference of the African Science Academy Development Initiative (ASADI) will be held Nov. 9-11 in Accra, Ghana, in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences. The theme of this year's conference will be improving maternal, newborn, and child health in Africa, which will be discussed by top experts from around the world. ASADI V will kick off with the release of Science in Action: Saving the Lives of Africa's Mothers, Newborns, and Children, a new report by several African science academies, assessing the effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing maternal and childhood mortality -- the focus of U.N. Millennium Development Goals Four and Five -- in sub-Saharan Africa. The report will include estimates of lives that could be saved if proven scientific methods reached more parts of Africa. 11/9
  • Meeting HIV/AIDS Cost Demands: Is The Global Response Working? The November/December 2009 edition of Health Affairs focuses on key global health challenges – including the economic, political, scientific and ethical ones – facing world policymakers in their response to HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention. Over the next several years, the world could face a funding shortfall that would prevent millions more with HIV/AIDS from gaining access to antiretroviral drugs. Yet over the long-term, the world could also take critical steps to slash the global burden of HIV-AIDS – and the costs of battling the pandemic – by half. 11/10
  • Meeting HIV/AIDS Cost Demands: Is The Global Response Working? The November/December 2009 edition of Health Affairs focuses on key global health challenges – including the economic, political, scientific and ethical ones – facing world policymakers in their response to HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention. Over the next several years, the world could face a funding shortfall that would prevent millions more with HIV/AIDS from gaining access to antiretroviral drugs. Yet over the long-term, the world could also take critical steps to slash the global burden of HIV-AIDS – and the costs of battling the pandemic – by half. 11/10

Global Fund-Financed Programs Reaching More People, Report Shows

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Thursday, July 09, 2009

The most recent statistics on programs funded in 140 countries through the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria released Wednesday reveal "[m]ore than 2 million people living with HIV have been reached with life-saving treatment," the UN News Centre reports (7/8).

According to the report, "80 million people have been given counseling and testing sessions against HIV while four million orphans have been provided with medical services, educational and community care," through Global Fund-supported programs, the Manila Bulletin reports.  In addition, "about 88 million have been provided with insecticide-treated bednets to combat the spread of malaria, up from 59 million last year" (Sabater, 7/9).

The Global Fund has also helped to connect 5.4 million people with TB drugs. "Over the past year, the number of people accessing ARVs through Global Fund-financed programs has increased by 31 percent, the number given TB drugs has increased by 38% and the number of nets distributed has increased by 49%," according to a Friends of the Global Fight release.

"In less than eight years, the Global Fund has gone from a concept to a driver of change," Global Fund Executive Director Michel Kazatchkine said in a written statement, adding, "There is still much to be done, but we are making real progress and I am proud that the Global Fund is a leader in this global effort." Executive Director of Friends of the Global Fight Natasha Bilimoria said in a written statement, "These impressive results from Global Fund-financed programs are a testament to what the world can do together to fight disease and improve health around the world. Because of strong U.S. leadership and support, the Global Fund is able to partner with countries around the world, improving not only citizens' health but in turn strengthening local and national economies" (7/8).

The Kaiser Daily Global Health Policy Report is published by the Kaiser Family Foundation. © 2009 Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.