This year, the Global Fund is celebrating 10 years of impact in fighting the three diseases in partnership with other bilateral and multilateral organizations. In its 10 years' existence, the Global Fund has brought treatment and prevention to millions of people. The world has moved from a mood of despair in the face of unstoppable pandemics to one of genuine hope that they can actually be beaten, and by providing nearly a quarter of all international funding to fight AIDS, two thirds of the funding against malaria and more than four fifths against TB, the Global Fund has played a central role in this turnaround.

The Fight Against Malaria

Malaria was a neglected disease at the beginning of this century. Since the massive expansion of nets' distribution, at least twelve countries have shown a reduction of 50 per cent or more in either confirmed malaria cases or admissions and deaths in just the last few years.

According to WHO data, the estimated number of malaria cases per 1000 persons at risk of malaria, reduced globally by 17% between 2000 and 2010. Between 2000 and 2008 there were steep declines in malaria cases in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland, indicating progress in this direction.

Beyond the southern tip of Africa, the biggest reductions in malaria cases and deaths since 2000 have been on islands and in small countries with intensive control programmes (Sao Tome and Principe, Cape Verde, Zanzibar).

Eritrea, Rwanda and Senegal are among the countries that are making the impressive progress against the disease. Malaria also appears to be in decline in Ethiopia and Zambia which have greatly increased net and indoor residual spraying coverage. In each of these countries, the number of cases reported annually fell by at least a quarter and, in some instances, by more than a half, between 2000 and 2010.

Thanks to Global Fund-supported programs 230 million insecticide-treated nets have been distributed worldwide to protect families from malaria; 230 million cases of malaria have been treated; and 43 million indoor residual sprayings have been provided for vector control.

Funding for malaria

Despite these successes, the global economic crisis has led to pressures on international health spending at precisely the moment when investments for malaria should be increased. If adequate resources are not raised, gains in malaria mortality reduction can be lost.

The World has never been so close to reducing the disease burden of malaria to a level at which it is no longer a public health threat in most endemic countries within the next decade. If momentum is list, even more costly investments will need to be done in the future to get back on track.

About the Global Fund

The Global Fund is a unique, public-private partnership and international financing institution dedicated to attracting and disbursing additional resources to prevent and treat HIV and AIDS, TB and malaria. This partnership between governments, civil society, the private sector and affected communities represents an innovative approach to international health financing. The Global Fund's model is based on the concepts of country ownership and performance-based funding, which means that people in countries implement their own programs based on their priorities and the Global Fund provides financing on the condition that verifiable results are achieved.