Today, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria released its 2024 Results Report, showing historic progress against the three diseases. Since 2002, the Global Fund partnership has saved 70 million lives, with a 63% reduction in mortality and a 42% decline in incidence in countries where it invests.
This progress has transformed health and well-being in entire communities. In 15 sub-Saharan African countries, life expectancy rose from 49 to 61 years since 2002, with more than half of that gain attributed to progress against AIDS, TB and malaria. Between 2002 and 2023, an estimated US$103 billion in health costs were averted through reduced inpatient and outpatient utilization.
In 2024:
- 25.6 million people received antiretroviral therapy for HIV.
- 7.4 million people were treated for TB.
- 162 million insecticide-treated mosquito nets were distributed to protect families from malaria.
Yet progress is at risk. After over two decades of remarkable progress, global health is once again in crisis. Sharp reductions in international funding are having a huge impact, including on the fight against AIDS, TB and malaria, and could put millions of lives at risk – many of them children’s. Added to this are global pressures such as drug resistance, debt distress, conflict, the erosion of human rights and the impacts of a changing climate. The report warns that without sustained commitment, the gains made with such effort could collapse, with far greater human and economic costs in the future and a tragic legacy for generations to come.
The good news is that new tools are being deployed that can accelerate the fight: long-acting HIV prevention such as lenacapavir, AI-driven interpretation of digital X-rays for TB case-finding, new treatments and vaccines, and dual active ingredient insecticide-treated nets to fight malaria. With urgent and sustained investments, these innovations could be game changers in ending the three epidemics as public health threats.
In the coming weeks, the Global Fund’s Eighth Replenishment will take place — a critical moment to sustain momentum in the fight against AIDS, TB and malaria. Investing in the Global Fund is one of the most effective ways to fight infectious diseases, and maintaining and increasing funding will be essential to avoid backsliding with severe human, social and economic consequences.
You can read the Global Fund’s Results Report at this link.
Image: The Global Fund/Brian Otieno
