By Leela de Kretser
Davos: The Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria announced its first pledge from the private sector on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, in Davos, on Tuesday.
The $10 million (about R157m) pledge by Comic Relief US unlocks a matching $30m commitment by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
More than 2 500 of the world’s leaders from politics, business, civil society, academia, media and the arts meet in the Swiss mountain village of Davos, as the World Economic Forum (WEF) hosts its first in-person annual meeting for more than two years.
David Beasley (@WFPChief) told #wef22 today that we're facing the worst humanitarian crisis in a century. He was addressing a session on the global food crisis, where he warned of the consequences of the war in Ukraine for food security.
Read more: https://t.co/VYUB400Y8a@WFP pic.twitter.com/zT1g7GBRej
The fund has set a 2024-2026 fund-raising target of $18 billion. US President Joe Biden, who will host an upcoming conference, has signalled a $6bn commitment.
Disruptions to health care caused by Covid-19 across the world saw reversals in testing and treatment of all three deadly diseases, said executive director Peter Sands.
The donor environment has also shifted dramatically since 2019 when the fund met a $14bn target.
Sands said the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and growing economic headwinds were impacting investment. Governments are in transition when it comes to budget allocations for Covid-19 and some are also committing money to help Ukraine.
Private sector donations are also being impacted by the recent market losses.
"It's a challenging time to be raising large sums of money," Sands said.
The World Economic Forum is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland.
Reuters