We, a coalition of 80 civil society and communities affected by TB from 13 countries in the
Anglophone Africa regions, gathered here in Lilongwe, Malawi, from 18-20 November 2024
for a regional TB meeting to strengthen advocacy and accountability in the fight to end TB
and close the TB funding gap.
In our region, 24 out of the 49 high TB-burden countries are in Africa, including Eswatini,
Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Africa,
Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, all of which are represented here bears the
highest burden of this epidemic. In 2023, an estimated 400,000 people died from TB in Africa, with many more affected by drug-resistant strains.
To reach the global target of ending TB by 2030, an estimated $ 22 billion is needed annually
yet only $ 7.6 billion was available in 2022. We emphasise the urgent need to close the TB
funding gap, which currently hinders progress toward meeting global targets to end TB and
leads to preventable deaths, making TB the world's leading infectious killer.
In this regard, we rea5irm our full, unwavering support for the TB33% Campaign and its
petition, which has already gathered more than 30,000 signatures worldwide. We also
support the by TB people Global on the outcomes of the Global Fund’s Strategy Committee
meeting and the underlying problem of underrepresentation of the global TB community in the Global Fund governance.
Currently, the Global Fund allocates 50% of its resources to HIV, 32% to malaria, and only
18% to TB. The campaign advocates for increasing the Global Fund’s TB response allocation
to 33%, highlighting the high mortality rates, the urgent need for action, and the ambitious
targets set by the UN High-Level Meeting on TB in 2018. The current percentage allocated to TB does not reflect the disease’s true burden. In 2022, globally there were 1.3 million TB
deaths, compared to 630,000 from HIV and 608,000 from malaria. Among the three
infectious diseases funded by the Global Fund, TB causes the most deaths but receives the
least funding. The sheer scale of TB deaths worldwide cannot be ignored.
The Global Fund’s principal mandate is to save lives, and it is imperative that its funding
allocations reflect the true burden of TB in an equitable manner. The Global Fund provides
76% of all global TB financing, whereas HIV receives additional support from other funding
streams such as UNAIDS and PEPFAR. With the current 18% allocation to TB, the world will
not be able to win the fight against TB nor meet the agreed targets under the WHO End TB
Strategy and the Stop TB Global Plan to End TB. This campaign is timely and essential if we
are to end TB by 2030.
Ahead of the Global Fund Board Meeting in Lilongwe, Malawi, on 19-21 November 2024, we
call on:
1) The Global Fund to adopt an equitable funding split, allocating 33% of its resources
to TB.
2) The Community and NGO delegations, as vital constituencies on the Global Fund
Board, to advocate for this message at the Board Meeting.
3) African delegations to carry this message to the Board, emphasizing the critical need
for increased support from our own region.
Signed by CSO and Community Representatives, November 2024, Lilongwe, Malawi.
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