OREANDA-NEWS. September 19, 2016. The UK will use a major new investment in the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria to secure a set of demanding performance targets. International Development Secretary Priti Patel has announced at the organisation’s 5th Replenishment event in Montreal.

Ms Patel outlined a three-year funding pledge alongside Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and other international donors. The UK’s investment, which will average £366 million per year in total, will help the Global Fund to save eight million lives from the three diseases.

A new performance agreement – the first of its kind – focuses on 10 clearly defined areas and will affect all of the fund’s work across the world. The UK will monitor performance against each area annually and 10 per cent of the new UK investment will only be paid out if there is good progress across the board.

The UK will also use a proportion of its investment to leverage up to £100 million from the private sector specifically to tackle malaria, with the UK doubling private sector contributions to the Global Fund. The Gates Foundation will also contribute to this matching fund.

International Development Secretary Priti Patel said:

As one of the world’s most effective aid institutions, the Global Fund has saved millions of lives and delivered remarkable progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis over the past 14 years.

This latest round of UK investment demonstrates that Britain is keeping the promises it has made to the world’s poor while underlining the Government’s commitment to tackle the great global challenges of our time, including disease, which is in the national interest.

But even some of the best performing international aid institutions can improve and deliver better value for taxpayers and those in need. That is why we are using this investment in the Global Fund to secure a demanding performance agreement to make sure UK aid achieves the maximum possible impact.

Performance agreements will become the norm for DFID’s engagement with international institutions as Global Britain uses its leadership to demand more for UK taxpayers and the world’s poorest.

The UK’s contribution will:

  • Fund 40 million bednets to tackle malaria;
  • Provide enough lifesaving anti-retroviral therapy for 1.3 million people with HIV; and
  • Support the treatment of 800,000 people with tuberculosis.

The 10 areas in the new performance agreement include:

  • Improving supply chains to maximise the impact of the fund’s investments.
  • Rooting out corruption by strengthening the fund’s risk management and monitoring processes.
  • Ensuring the fund’s resources are targeted towards the countries that need them the most.
  • Increasing the amount of Global Fund investments that are tied to results, so funds are only dispersed once proven, measurable targets are reached.
  • Ensuring the fund increases its work with girls and women, tackling the underlying causes of the shockingly high HIV infection rate in young women and making more progress in preventing malaria during pregnancy.

The International Development Secretary also made clear that the UK will use its position as one of the world’s leading aid donors to challenge, change and reform the wider global aid system.

The Global Fund is a public-private partnership created in 2002 focused exclusively on tackling HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis across the globe. Since its inception it has saved an estimated 20 million lives and driven extraordinary progress in the fight against the three diseases. Since 2000 malaria death rates have dropped by nearly two-thirds, HIV infections have dropped by over a third and new TB infections have dropped by 18%.

The Global Fund has set a target for raising US\\$13 billion (£9.8 billion) for its next three-year cycle of funding. The US has already committed up to \\$4.3 billion (£3.24 billion).