African Ambassadors Unite in Geneva to Call for Strong Global Fund Replenishment
11 September 2025
GENEVA – African Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives of the Africa Group met yesterday at the Global Health Campus in Geneva, calling on the international community to rally behind the Global Fund’s Eighth Replenishment.
Convened under the theme “Catalyzing African Leadership for Global Health,” the meeting was hosted by the Republic of South Africa, co-host of the Eighth Replenishment with the United Kingdom, and current holder of the G20 Presidency.
The Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives hailed the newly released Global Fund 2025 Results Report, which shows that the Fund’s investments have helped save 70 million lives in two decades, strengthened health and community systems, and advanced universal health coverage.
The Africa Group reaffirmed Africa’s collective commitment to end AIDS, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria as public health threats. The group underscored the importance of advancing universal health coverage and health security through strategies grounded in equity, human rights, gender equality and community leadership.
The Group welcomed the Global Fund’s Eighth Replenishment as a critical opportunity to sustain and accelerate impact across the continent, expressing strong political support for a successful outcome. Recognizing that more than 70% of Global Fund resources support African countries, they emphasized Africa’s central role in the partnership to defeat the three diseases and strengthen health systems.
At the same time, the Group reiterated commitment to increase domestic health financing, in line with the Abuja Declaration and national fiscal realities, through improved public financial management, efficiency gains and targeted co-financing of priority interventions for HIV, TB and malaria within stronger primary health care. They also invited African Union Member States, where feasible, to make solidarity pledges to the Global Fund’s Eighth Replenishment as expressions of African ownership of the partnership.
With a successful Replenishment, the Global Fund partnership could help save up to 23 million lives between 2027 and 2029 and reduce the mortality rate from AIDS, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria by 64% by 2029, compared to 2023 levels, while strengthening health and community systems to fight new outbreaks and accelerate pathways to self-reliance.
The gathering concluded by noting that a joint declaration from Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives will still be processed and adopted in accordance with Africa Group protocols and published in due course.