HIV and the key players
Key Correspondents bring the global to the local by reporting how decisions made by governments, international donors, multilateral and bilateral agencies and the private sector affect people's attempts to stay healthy.
KCs also examine the way international agreements such as the Millennium Development Goals and Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights impact on communities most affected by HIV.
Global Fund approves $17 million for new HIV programmes in Africa
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria has granted around US$17 million to two consortia of organisations focussing on key populations most affected by HIV, to combat the disease across eastern and southern Africa. more
Progress and missed opportunities at World Health Congress
As a medical professional attending the World Congress on Publich Health, I was keen to see how current priorities would be addressed, but the clear lack of community dialogue was disappointing. more
Malawi confronts challenges in prioritising HIV response
Malawi has appointed new principal recipients to administer $574 million allocated to fight HIV, as it seeks to end financial scandal involving the National AIDS Commission. more
Malawi and Brazil HIV project in limbo for three years
A one-year project with a budget of US$100,000-200,000, to build cooperation between the Brazilian and Malawian governments in their responses to HIV, has not got off the ground for three years. more
Financing trends and making smarter investments in the HIV response
During a high-level political session at the 20th International AIDS Conference, UNAIDS
executive director Michel Sidibé called for a new set of treatment targets by 2030. more
Communities must remain at the forefront of HIV response
Debate at AIDS 2014 is putting a spotlight on governments and policymakers who are failing to involve communities in HIV and TB programmes, turning instead to researchers and experts to make key decisions. more
No cause for panic as Kenya faces steep cuts to AIDS funding
PEPFAR, one of the biggest donors for HIV programmes in Kenya, has been making steep funding cuts, according to civil society sources. more
Health experts call for integrated approach to HIV and TB in Zimbabwe
Tremendous progress has been made in minimising the spread of HIV while TB programming is weak in comparison, according to UNAIDS country director for Zimbabwe. more
The Global Fund brings new funding model to Latin America
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is touring countries in the global south to explain the features of their new funding model (NFM). more
Malawi to prioritise gender-based messages in response to HIV and TB
A new civil society charter to tackle HIV and TB is prioritising gender-based messages to help change people’s behaviour. more
Uganda gets USD 420 million to fight HIV, TB and malaria
Uganda has received over 400 million US dollars from the Global Fund to beef up the fight against HIV, TB and malaria. more
New civil society partner elected to coordinate AIDS conferences
MSMGF has been elected as a new civil society partner for the next two International AIDS Conferences. more
Malawi develops civil society charter to tackle HIV and TB
On 13 February, civil society organisations and partners met in Malawi met to develop a civil society priorities charter in the response to HIV and TB. more
Zambia and Swaziland develop roadmap to change behavior in response to HIV
Zambia and Swaziland develop advocacy roadmaps to ensure campaigns to change behavior are central to their countries’ response to HIV. more
Malawi faces shortage of healthcare workers as it battles AIDS epidemic
Malawi’s health sector is grappling with a serious lack of trained health care staff that could have an impact on its plans to reach a greater number of HIV-positive Malawians with antiretroviral therapy. more
Zambian health minister blames UNICEF for rationing of HIV medication
A Zambian deputy minister of health has admitted rationing HIV treatment but blames UNICEF for the delay in making the lifesaving drugs available. more
Asian countries look to increase domestic funding for HIV
At an international conference in Thailand, a number of countries in Asia Pacific are showing their commitment to domestic investment for HIV more
African health ministers reaffirm commitment to financing for HIV
Health ministers made their commitment at a meeting held alongside the International Conference on Family Planning more
“AIDS Is Not Over”: Irish civil society meets with the Global Fund
Concerns over a decrease in HIV/AIDS financing and donor prioritisation were expressed during a recent meeting of Irish civil society and the Global Fund for HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria. more
Abuja+12: achievements and bottlenecks in the Ivory Coast
One year on from the launch of the Abuja+12 roadmap to address AIDS, TB and malaria in Africa, what progress has been made? more
Is the new UNAIDS Treatment 2015 framework a solution to end AIDS?
UNAIDS is urging countries to rapidly expand access to antiretroviral medication to maximise benefits of HIV prevention and treatment in a bid to meet the 2015 goal to combat HIV. more
African Union needs to listen to people living with HIV
As the African Union meets in Nigeria today for Abuja+12, member states face the challenge of developing financial investment plans for AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. more
Vanishing point: where is HIV at this year’s G8 summit?
As the G8 summit kicks off on 17 June, three main priorities are being discussed: trade, tax and transparency. But where are global poverty, malnutrition and health on the agenda? more
Uganda launches project to tackle malaria
What would happen if five buses carrying 60 passengers crashed every day killing all the people on board? Malaria may be no accident but it claims the same number of Ugandans, killing 200-300 people per day – the majority of them children. more
Uganda launches malaria prevention campaign
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria announced on Friday, 10 May that it is supporting Uganda in the distribution of over 15.5 million long-lasting insecticide-treated nets, making it the largest malaria prevention campaign this year. An estimated … more
The Global Fund targets $15 billion to fight HIV, TB and malaria
The Global Fund targets $15 billion to effectively fight AIDS, TB and malaria more
Global Fund Congratulates Peter Piot on Winning Prize for Medical Research
Mark Dybul, Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, congratulated Peter Piot for winning the Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize for medical research. The prize was awarded to Piot by the Government of Japan on 13 … more
Global Fund Appoints Michael Borowitz as Head of Strategic Investment & Partnerships
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has named Michael Borowitz as Head of the Strategic Investment and Partnerships Department where he will supervise portfolio optimization and technical cooperation as well as serve as the Global Fund’s Chief Economist. more
EU unveils €13 million in support of Zimbabwe’s Health Transition Fund
The European Union has unveiled a €13 million (US$18 million) towards the revitalisation of Zimbabwe’s health sector through the Health Transition Fund. more
Zambia to benefit from US-led military health promotions
The American and Zambian government are running the world’s second largest programme on health promotion in the defense forces, the American ambassador to Zambia has revealed. more
Charlize Theron honoured by World Economic Forum for HIV work
Academy award winning actress and HIV and AIDS campaigner Charlize Theron has been awarded the World Economic Forum’s Crystal Award for her commitment to improving the lives of African youth, in particular those suffering from HIV and AIDS. more
Zimbabwe to conduct TB national prevalence survey
Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Health and Child Welfare (MHCW) is to conduct its first national tuberculosis prevalency survey. more
“Explosive” emerging and re-emerging diseases set to continue, warns WHO
Dr Margaret Chan, director general of the World Health Organisation, has warned that the “explosive” recent increase in emerging and re-emerging diseases is set to continue. more
Japan donates $343 to Global Fund - its most generous year yet
Japan has made a second donation of US$ 127 million to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis bringing its total contribution for 2012 to US$343 million - the country’s highest contribution in 10 years. more
Accuracy of countries’ health data must improve, warns WHO
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said a recent study published in The Lancet on which countries carry the largest disease burden highlights the need to improve health data in many countries. more
GlaxoSmithKline launches SMS service to tackle counterfeit drugs
Health company GlaxoSmithKline has introduced an SMS service dubbed Hakikisha dawa to enhance patient safety by allowing people to check whether GSK branded drugs are real. more
Zambian minister urges African governments to contribute towards clinical trials
Professor Nkandu Luo has urged African governments to support the development of new drugs against HIV, tuberculosis and malaria by actively contributing towards the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership programme. more
GlaxoSmithKline tops 2012 Access to Medicines Index
GlaxoSmithKline, one of the world’s leading research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies, has ranked highest in the Access to Medicines (ATM) Index for the third time. more
Global Fund approves US$75 million for Mali’s HIV response
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has approved US$75 million for HIV screening, prevention and treatment in Mali over the next three years. more
Poor evidence generation affecting policy decision making in Africa, says WHO
Africa is poor at generating evidence for policy and decision making, Dr Luis Sambo, the World Health Organisation regional director for Africa has said. more
Global Fund introduces new funding model
The Global Fund to Fights AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis is adopting a new approach to funding grants by investing additional money in health programmes that are poised to achieve the quickest impact. more
First ever framework to prevent and control non-communicable diseases agreed by WHO
The first ever global monitoring framework to prevent and control diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer, chronic lung disease and other non-communicable diseases has been agreed by World Health Organisations’ member states. more
Increase funding to improve maternal health says WHO boss
Dr Johquim Saweka, the World Health Organisation’s Uganda director, says improving maternal and child health requires political commitment, involvement of all stakeholders and the right strategies. more
Blog Action Day 2012
Today, as bloggers of the world celebrate Blog Action Day I would like to pay tribute to the work of the Key Correspondents, who have opened many eyes, including mine, to the realities people face as they struggle to claim basic health rights. more
Zimbabwe establishes national health information committee
A National Health Information Technical Committee (NHISTC) has been established in Zimbabwe to oversee the implementation of the National Health Information strategy for 2009-2014 and to promote e-health initiatives. more
Uganda: TASO launches five year strategic plan
The AIDS Support Organization (TASO) has unveiled its five year strategic plan with a call for more funding into HIV/AIDS related activities countrywide, an official has said. more
UNAIDS to facilitate HIV investment framework roll-out in Zimbabwe
The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) Country Coordinator is seeking to engage a national consultant to assist in the implementation of the HIV investment framework in Zimbabwe, according to Tawanda Chisango, UNAIDS Information and Communications Officer for Zimbabwe. more
African Union establishes High Level Panel on Science, Technology and Innovation
Given rapid advances in science and technology and growing emphasis on innovation in Africa, the African Union (AU) has established a high level advisory panel on science, technology and innovation, according to the African Union Commission (AUC). more
African Union’s African Women Decade bearing fruit
When the African Union (AU) declared 2010-2020 as African women decade, many of us dismissed it as another cheap politicking by the African body or another money making spree by some pretenders. more
Small percentage of Global Fund money mispent, audit finds
A total of 3% of money from The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis between 2005 and 2012 had been misspent, fraudulently misappropriated or inadequately accounted for. According to a press release made available by The Global Fund’s … more
Study finds civil society is essential to Cambodia’s HIV response
A study into the role and contribution of civil society in the contributions to HIV and AIDS in Cambodia shows that civil society cannot work without an enabling environment which includes government stakeholders at national and sub-national levels. more
Global Fund and TASO shut downs lead to uncertainty for Ugandans living with HIV
Last year, when the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis cancelled funding between 2014 to 2016, anxiety was set in motion for Ugandans living with HIV. more
Co-investment needed to weather tough economic storm, says Global Fund
Gabriel Jaramillo, the general manager of Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, has urged a gathering of finance and health ministers from across Africa to invest in tackling the three diseases in what is increasingly a tough economic climate. more
E-Health seminar to map out strategy and framework for Zimbabwe
The University of Zimbabwe (UZ) College of Health Sciences (HITRAC) will this month ( 28 June, 2012) hold an e-health seminar with the aim of devising a strategy and framework for maintaining continuity of care through electronic systems in Zimbabwe. more
Global Week of Action – Robin Hood Tax and G8
KC Ishdeep Koholi on the Robin Hood Tax global week of action, which took place from May 18 to May 22 in the wake of the G8 Summit at Camp David. more
Zimbabwe’s UNCG Secretariat launches MDGs discussion forum
The United Nations Communications Group (UNCG) in Zimbabwe has launched the first of its kind MDGs discussion forum entitled This Wednesday @ UNIC being held under the banner of the UN country team (UNCT) in Zimbabwe. According to Tafadzwa Mwale … more
Kenya demo urges release of $500 million PEPFAR funds
Hundreds of activists and people living with HIV took to the street last week (25 April 2012) to urge the government of Kenya in collaboration with the US government to utilize the unspent President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR) money for HIV treatment in Kenya. more
G8 foreign ministers endorse Global Fund reforms
The Global Fund has hailed the call by G8 foreign ministers for new donors to support the organization’s lifesaving work as a ringing endorsement of major reforms that are underway to strengthen management and financial oversigh more
Zimbabwe to host WHO meeting on neglected tropical diseases
Zimbabwe is hosting a World Health Organization (WHO) meeting on neglected tropical diseases on 19-23 March. more
Seed funding for Zim’s research and development projects
Zimbabwean innovators and scientists usually hamstrung by lack of funding to develop their projects will now be able to acquire seed funding through a research and development budgetary allocation.
more
A Millennium Development Goal success
The world has met the Millennium Development Goal target of halving the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the achievement was ‘a great one for the people of the world.’ A … more
Do African leaders finance health as set in the Abuja Declaration?
The Abuja Declaration that was adopted in April 2001 by African leaders declared that the response to HIV/AIDS, TB and other related infections would become the highest priority in their national development plans. Leaders committed themselves to take all necessary … more
Review finds shortfalls in Zimbabwe’s Public Health Act
Zimbabwe’s Public Health Act fails to address public health challenges including non-communicable diseases, maternal health and cross-border risks, according to a review by the Advisory Board of Public Health. more
Our correspondents are writing for change on HIV issues relating to young people, as well as drug use.