Yvonne Chaka Chaka

This weekend The Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria is celebrating its tenth birthday. As we have previously reported, the Fund has achieved tremendous success in the past ten years, but it has also struggled in recent times to secure the funding necessary to save more lives from AIDS, TB and malaria.

The good news is that a number of donors and celebrities have taken the opportunity of the World Economic Forum in Davos this week to voice their support for the Fund. Both the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Government of Japan have announced multi-million dollar contributions to the Global Fund. And celebrities from Bono to Bill Clinton have released a video of support testifying to the impact the Fund has made on the health of millions of people in the past 10 years.

The Fund also announced the appointment of a new General Manager, Gabriel Jaramillo, who is well versed in malaria issues, having been working with UN Special Envoy for Malaria (and Malaria No More founder) Ray Chambers over the past year. Mr Jaramillo takes up his post from 1 February and will oversee the management of the Global Fund’s investments – around $10 billion planned during the funding period of 2011-2013, up from $8 billion between 2008 and 2010.

Meanwhile closer to home the Shadow International Development Secretary of State, Ivan Lewis MP, has called for the International Development Select Committee to hold a one-off inquiry to examine, “the effect the Global Fund’s spending freeze is having on DFID’s targets for tackling HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria as well as how best the international community could come together to find a workable solution to ensure ten years of progress are not put at risk.” An inquiry could help clarify when the British government might announce its increased funding for the Global Fund – something we and The Global Poverty Project are keen to see happen very shortly.

Also at Davos this week, internationally re-known singer Yvonne Chaka Chaka has been honoured by the World Economic Forum for her humanitarian work with women and children, in particular for malaria control. Malaria No More UK has been a fan of Yvonne’s for quite a while – we organised the global premiere of her film and a number of high profile media interviews for her in London in 2010. Congratulations to Yvonne!

Take a look at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s infographic on a decade of The Global Fund
Get involved in our campaign with the Global Poverty Project to help ‘Fund The Fund’