Global Fund Welcomes Pledge by Ms. Le Nu Thuy Duong to Support Innovative and Lifesaving TB Programs in Viet Nam
08 February 2023
HANOI – The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is pleased to announce that the pledge made by Vietnamese philanthropist Ms. Le Nu Thuy Duong will support innovative TB programs throughout Viet Nam. Her US$3 million pledge was further bolstered by matching funds from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, resulting in a US$9 million total commitment to the Global Fund.
Ms. Duong pledged US$3 million at the Global Fund’s Seventh Replenishment Conference hosted by President Joe Biden in New York, USA, in September 2022. She has been supporting the Global Fund since 2019, when she pledged US$1 million, which was also matched by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, at the Global Fund’s Sixth Replenishment Conference in Lyon, France.
Ms. Duong’s support has helped expand the critical work of fighting TB led by the government of Viet Nam. Recent initiatives include engaging providers outside of the National TB Program network (such as private sector providers and public hospitals) to identify people with TB and supporting the integration of TB treatment into clinical services for children.
Ms Duong (6th from right) poses for a portrait with representatives from the TB facility, representatives from the Viet Nam National TB Program (NTP), members of her team and Global Fund representatives during her tour at the National Lung Hospital in Hanoi. Photo: The Global Fund/Tim Gerard Barker
Since 2003, the Global Fund has invested more than US$700 million to fight HIV, TB and malaria in Viet Nam, with an additional US$132 million committed for 2024-2026. Estimates indicate that more than 180,000 people fall ill with TB in Viet Nam every year, yet only 60% of those infections are reported, making it difficult to stop the transmission of the disease. The aim of the Global Fund-supported national program is to place Viet Nam on the road to TB elimination by diagnosing and treating around 140,000 people with TB every year – or around 80% of those who fall ill with the disease – with a special focus on childhood TB.
At the end of 2021, despite the negative impact of COVID-19, the Viet Nam National TB Program reported that 99,852 people with TB were treated with a 91% treatment success rate for all forms of TB.
“We acknowledge the government of Viet Nam for its leadership and thank Ms. Le Nu Thuy Duong and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for their support in strengthening global health systems,” said Françoise Vanni, Director of External Relations and Communications at the Global Fund. “Their contribution will help step up the fight against TB by expanding access to treatment for the most vulnerable that will, ultimately, save many more lives.”
“I am delighted to partner with the Global Fund and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to contribute to a healthier and safer future for my country,” said Ms. Duong. “The achievements of this partnership have been remarkable, and I am honored to be part of this work. The site visit to the National Lung Hospital was inspiring, but it also exposed the many challenges in addressing the burden of tuberculosis and multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. I invite my peers in the business and philanthropic communities to join me in this important, lifesaving work.”
“We are pleased to partner with Ms. Le Nu Thuy Duong and the Global Fund to support the fight against the world's deadliest diseases. We will not defeat them alone, but together, with public, private and philanthropic actors joining forces,” said Dr. Alaa Murabit, Director of PAC Health from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “We applaud Ms. Le Nu Thuy Duong’s commitment to advancing global health.”