G8 Africa statement reaction - Global Fund applauds re-commitment to universal access and expects firm commitments to 6-8 billion Global Fund
08 June 2007
Heiligendamm - "This is a strong G8 agreement that makes it possible to defeat the pandemics of l AIDS, TB and malaria," said Dr. Michel Kazatchkine, Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. "The endorsement by the G8 leaders of $6 to 8 billion per year for the Global Fund, a three-fold increase from the current level as part of their recommitment to universal access to treatment, is very good news. As they note, all donor countries can contribute to this at the Global Fund replenishment conference Chancellor Merkel will lead in September. We appreciate the role of the G8 leaders in reaffirming the universal treatment commitment. We also salute the moral leadership of Bono, Bob Geldof and the civil society movement in keeping the world's focus on fighting these diseases and on Africa's development."
"The great thing about the 2005 G8 AIDS commitment on universal access to AIDS treatment is what it said: the lives of Africans with AIDS -- my life, my patients' lives -- are as precious as those of anyone on earth. The money for AIDS is great, the Global Fund and PEPFAR treat many people and will treat many more." said Dr. Francoise Ndayishimye, an HIV+ doctor in Burundi who represents people with AIDS on the board of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.