KFF Daily Global Health Policy Report

In The News

World Meets MDG Of Treating 15M People Living With HIV; U.N. Says AIDS-Free Generation Possible With Increased Investments

News outlets highlight findings from a new UNAIDS report, titled “How AIDS changed everything — MDG6: 15 years, 15 lessons of hope from the AIDS response.”

Agence France-Presse: Ban says world on way to ‘generation free of AIDS’
“U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday the world was headed for a ‘generation free of AIDS,’ after UNAIDS reported a 35 percent drop in new HIV infections from 15 years ago…” (Lebhour/Pedrero, 7/13).

BBC News: HIV: U.N. meets goal to treat 15 million
“The goal to get HIV treatment to 15 million people by the end of 2015 has already been met, says the United Nations AIDS agency. The landmark figure was reached in March — nine months ahead of schedule…” (Roberts, 7/14).

The Economist: HIV infections and deaths still in decline
“…Equally important, this progress looks likely to continue. The $22 billion reckoned necessary to keep the show on the road this year will probably be raised successfully…” (7/14).

Financial Times: 8M saved by efforts to combat AIDS but U.N. calls for more action
“…International investment of about $22bn in anti-AIDS programs this year must rise to $31.9bn by 2020 to meet the target of ending the epidemic by 2030, according to UNAIDS, which coordinates the global effort…” (Ward, 7/14).

The Guardian: People with HIV live almost 20 years longer than in 2001
“…But despite the increased access to treatment, experts have warned that AIDS could make a dramatic comeback if governments don’t increase funding and expand access to drugs over the next five years. ‘We have a fragile five-year window. We have bent the AIDS curve, but we haven’t broken it,’ [UNAIDS Executive Director Michel] Sidibé said…” (Anderson, 7/14).

Reuters: Goal to end AIDS epidemic by 2030 ‘ambitious but realistic’ — U.N. chief
“…One of the most remarkable successes has been reducing new infections among children by 58 percent between 2000 and 2014, the agency said. This has been achieved by ensuring women with HIV receive medicine to prevent them from passing on the infection when they give birth…” (Migiro, 7/14).

ScienceInsider: New report card on global HIV/AIDS epidemic
“…The 515-page report by UNAIDS includes new estimates of infections for each country, ‘lessons of hope,’ details on shortcomings, and essays from health officials, politicians, disease advocates, and celebrities. … In concert with the report’s release, UNAIDS has added a new ‘data visualization’ feature to its website that graphically displays detailed information about each country” (Cohen, 7/14).

Link to individual story

Ban Calls For 'Flexibility, Compromise,' Ethiopian PM Urges Innovation On Development Funding At FFD3

News outlets report on the opening of the Third International Financing for Development conference (FFD3) taking place this week in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Agence France-Presse: U.N. chief urges ‘flexibility, compromise’ at development summit
“U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday called for ‘flexibility and compromise’ at a development financing summit that opened in Ethiopia’s capital and is seen as crucial for efforts to end poverty and tackle climate change…” (Lebhour, 7/13).

Deutsche Welle: Addis Ababa hosts key global development summit
“…Specifically, 190 nations hope to agree on how to bankroll 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which include ending poverty and hunger, combating climate change, and achieving gender equality by 2030…” (Caldwell, 7/13).

Devex: The future of development finance: Live from Addis
“…Devex is on the ground at the headquarters of the U.N. Economic Commission for Africa, talking to high-level representatives from donor agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector. We’ll provide continuing updates on the buzz from the weeklong meetings on this running blog, so check back regularly…” (Ravelo, 7/13).

The Guardian: Addis Ababa development finance summit: all you need to know
“…The specific targets for each goal, which have not been formally agreed yet, will take over from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) at the end of the year. According to U.N. estimates, for the new goals to be met will require as much as $11.5tn a year, $172.5tn over the 15-year timeframe…” (Anderson/Chonghaile, 7/13).

Xinhua News: Int’l conference on Financing for Development opens in Ethiopia
“…Chairing the opening session of the conference, Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn called for ‘a different approach than usual’ which will build on the successes achieved on the MDGs and go towards realizing the world’s Sustainable Development Goals…” (7/13).

Link to individual story

U.N. Calls For Greater Investments In MCH, Malaria, Gender Equality At FFD3

The U.N. News Centre publishes several articles examining actions at the Third International Financing for Development conference (FFD3) taking place this week in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

U.N. News Centre: ADDIS: U.N. and partners launch key financing platform to end maternal, child mortality
“…The Global Financing Facility (GFF) will support Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health and the Sustainable Development Goals that world leaders are expected to adopt in September. … It was also announced that $12 billion in domestic and international, private, and public funding has already been aligned to country-led, five-year investment plans for women’s, children’s, and adolescents’ health in the four GFF front-runner countries of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania…” (7/13).

U.N. News Centre: ADDIS: investing in gender equality vital to economic growth, sustainable development, says Ban
“… ‘It is clear that we have not invested sufficiently in gender equality,’ [U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon] said at a side event hosted by U.N. Women and the World Bank on Financing for Gender Equality. ‘We know that persisting gaps in gender equality and women’s empowerment in the world have been a barrier to the full achievement of each of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)’…” (7/14).

U.N. News Centre: ADDIS: greater investments needed as fight against malaria enters critical phase — U.N.
“Despite the tremendous progress made over the past 15 years, greater investments are needed to achieve the goal of a world free of malaria, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed [Monday] in Ethiopia, where world leaders have gathered to discuss financing for development. ‘We are coming to the end of an extraordinary period in the fight against malaria,’ Mr. Ban said at an event on Malaria Financing for a New Era, held on the sidelines of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development…” (7/13).

Link to individual story

Humanitarian, Development Sectors Must Work More Closely Together, World Bank Official Says

IRIN: World Bank: we are not in competition
“In an interview with IRIN ahead of the third U.N. Financing for Development (FFD3) summit, Bertrand Badré, managing director and CFO of the World Bank Group, outlines why he believes the humanitarian and development sectors are ‘intimately connected’ and why they should be working more closely together…” (Redvers, 7/13).

Link to individual story

IRIN Speaks With Health Experts Regarding WHO's Next Steps Following Ebola Interim Assessment Panel Report

IRIN: Can WHO learn the lessons from Ebola?
“…Matshidiso Rebecca Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa, told IRIN that the world health body welcomes the [Ebola Interim Assessment Panel’s] recommendations and has already begun moving forward on some, including the development of a global health emergency workforce and a contingency fund. … IRIN spoke with five health experts about what needs to come next…” (Lazuta, 7/13).

Link to individual story

Guinea's President Looks To Rebuild Health System, Bolster Private Sector In Ebola Recovery

The Guardian: Guinea’s president on global aid push: ‘Ebola forced us to change completely’
“…[Guinea President Alpha] Condé would like to see many of the donations pledged on Friday funneled into stimulating the private sector, which he said, was ‘catastrophically’ hit by Ebola. Despite actively recruiting for direct foreign investment in agriculture and mineral industries, Condé was adamant that rebuilding a functional health system remained his main priority…” (Jalabi, 7/12).

Link to individual story

More Focused Global Health Investment System Needed To Plug Funding Gaps, Study Says

TIME: Here’s How Much More Money Is Needed to Improve Global Health
“…In a report published in the journal Lancet, researchers point out large gaps in the money raised and dispatched for public health purposes and the medical needs of countries, particularly in the developing world, to keep their populations healthy. … What’s lacking, the study authors say, is a more focused system for investing in global health that emphasizes programs designed to achieve certain public health functions, such as vaccinating a particular population or corralling antibiotic resistance or the spread of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis…” (Park, 7/13).

Link to individual story

Evidence Growing Climate Change Affects Health; Scientists Trying To Determine Extent

New York Times: Unraveling the Relationship Between Climate Change and Health
“…Scientists agree that evidence is growing that warmer weather is having an effect on health, but they say it is only one part of an immensely complex set of forces that are influencing health…” (Tavernise, 7/13).

Link to individual story

Few Research Projects In Africa Conducted By Or For Nurses, Who Deliver Most Health Care

New York Times: Little Research Is Done in Africa by or for Nurses
“While most health care in Africa is delivered by nurses rather than doctors, little medical research is done by nurses or for them, and too much is determined by donors’ priorities rather than by the challenges that African nurses actually are facing, according to a new study … published by the International Journal of Nursing Studies and presented last week at a nursing conference in Nairobi, Kenya…” (McNeil, 7/13).

Link to individual story

Editorials and Opinions

Malaria Elimination Possible With Proper Investments

Skoll World Forum: Raising Returns and Saving Lives: Malaria Control is Smart Business
Brian Brink, chair of the Private Sector Constituency for Health in the Southern African Development Community Region

“…There is no acceptable excuse for a high burden of malaria in any region — it is simply a case of insufficient investment and technical skills. Financial innovations and partnerships among private sector partners, donor governments, and civil society will make the disease’s defeat possible. The private sector’s geographic reach, efficient processes, and ability to react quickly makes it an ideal partner; and, without that partnership, malaria will be an ongoing obstacle for companies operating in emerging markets. Controlling malaria saves lives, improves productivity, and offers a sustainable return on investment for any business” (7/10).

The Guardian: Here’s how to wipe malaria off the map
James Whiting, executive director of Malaria No More U.K.

“…The global community has agreed to reduce deaths by 90 percent, and eliminate the disease in at least 35 countries by 2030. … To finish the job, we know the price tag and the returns. Experts estimate that the cost of achieving the 2030 malaria goals will be $100bn (£64bn) — that requires us to raise $6.5bn per year by 2020. It might sound like a high price tag but there’s a huge return: reaching the 2030 goals will mean more than 10 million lives saved, nearly three billion cases averted and the potential to unlock more than $4tn in additional economic output globally. This is truly one of the ‘best buys’ in global health…” (7/14).

Link to individual story

Global Community Must Prioritize LDCs In Development Agenda

Inter Press Service: Opinion: FFD Must Deliver for Least Developed Countries
Gyan Chandra Acharya, under secretary general and high representative for the least developed countries, landlocked developing countries, and small island developing states at the U.N.

“…Despite the aspirations of the post-2015 development agenda, it must be recognized that the goals and targets will be fully and effectively realized only if we make them inclusive of all. … Adopting the right vision is key, but implementation is what makes all the difference. … Currently most of the aid distributed in the world does not go to the poorest countries. As the global community meets in Addis, least developed countries are calling for commitments that would channel the equivalent of at least 50 percent of net overseas development assistance to LDCs by 2030. The world has not only a moral responsibility to ensure that the most vulnerable are sufficiently supported, but also to track where aid spending is going in a transparent and accountable manner. … These countries have the potential to make powerful contributions to a stable and peaceful global order based on shared prosperity…” (7/10).

Link to individual story

Private Capital Investments, Facilitated By Development Aid, Can Help Achieve SDGs

Wall Street Journal: The Healthy Turn From Aid to Investment
Grete Faremo, executive director of the U.N. Office for Project Services

“…[P]rivate capital, domestic and foreign, is a larger potential source than aid for investing in Africa’s future. Finding ways to put that private capital to good use — by building resilient infrastructure, sound industrial projects, and modern agriculture — is crucial. … [The Third International Financing for Development] conference should lay the groundwork for a new order, in which aid facilitates sensible private investments and is used to reduce the risk of doing business in developing countries. … We at the United Nations are ready to help bring the private sector, aid agencies, and governments together; to help developing countries adopt safeguards against corruption and ensure that ordinary people benefit from economic growth … [as well as] lower obstacles and risks so that private capital can help turn the U.N.’s new Sustainable Development Goals into reality…” (7/13).

Link to individual story

From the Global Health Policy Community

HIV Funding To LMICs Increased Slightly In 2014, Despite Decreases From Half Of Donor Governments, Kaiser/UNAIDS Report Shows

Kaiser Family Foundation/UNAIDS: Kaiser/UNAIDS Study Finds Slight Increase In Donor Government Funding for AIDS In 2014
In a press release, the Kaiser Family Foundation and UNAIDS discuss a new joint report showing “although there was a slight increase in funding to respond to HIV in low- and middle-income countries in 2014, seven of 14 donor governments actually decreased funding, two remained flat, and funding from five governments increased. … The U.S. government remained the largest donor government to HIV in the world but funding remained essentially flat, totaling US$5.6 billion in 2014, as it did in 2013. The next largest funder was the U.K., at US$1.1 billion. In addition to the U.K. increase, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, and Norway also increased total assistance for HIV in 2014, while Germany and the U.S. remained essentially flat. Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Ireland, Sweden, and the European Commission decreased assistance for HIV in 2014…” (7/14).

Link to individual story

PMI 'Integral' Partner In Efforts To Achieve Malaria-Free World

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s “Impatient Optimists”: PMI Is a Vital Partner to End Malaria
Alan Magill, director of the malaria program at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, says the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) is “integral” to achieving a malaria-free world. “…It has become a major force behind global efforts that have reduced malaria mortality rates by half since 2000. More than six million people, mostly children, are alive today as a result of this global collaboration…” (7/13).

Link to individual story

Experts Gather At WHO Meeting To Discuss 'Building Health Security Beyond Ebola'

WHO: The World Health Organization to accelerate national and global health security
“The World Health Organization (WHO) has brought together 200 high-level experts from governments, development agencies, civil society, and international organizations to make the world a safer place. The conference called ‘Building Health Security Beyond Ebola’ will be held in Cape Town, South Africa, from 13 to 15 July. Experts at the meeting will focus on how to make countries and communities stronger by accelerating development of health systems and capacities identified by the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005) to prevent, detect, and respond to a public health emergency of international concern…” (7/13).

Link to individual story

WHO's 'Mental Health Atlas 2014' Shows Inequalities In Financing For, Access To Mental Health Care

WHO: Global health workforce, finances remain low for mental health
In this media note, the WHO discusses its recently released “Mental Health Atlas 2014.” The agency writes, “…Huge inequalities in access to mental health services exist depending on where people live. … The report states global spending on mental health is still very low. Low and middle-income countries spend less than US$ 2 per capita per year on mental health, whereas high-income countries spend more than US$ 50…” (7/14).

Link to individual story

Friends Of The Global Fight Highlights 9 Reasons Nations Should Mobilize Domestic Resources For Health

Friends of the Global Fight: 9 Reasons Countries Should Grow Domestic Health Investments Now
On Storify, Friends of the Global Fight discusses nine reasons domestic resource mobilization (DRM) for health is important. The page pulls relevant tweets and infographics to highlight the nine reasons, stating DRM is important “to building country ownership of health systems, decreasing donor dependence, strengthening regional stability, growing economies, and working toward the defeat of epidemics like HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria…” (7/13).

Link to individual story

FP2020 Launches 10-Day Blog Series To Commemorate 3rd Anniversary, Highlight Family Planning Successes

Family Planning 2020: ‘Rights in Action’ Blog Series Launches to Commemorate Third Anniversary of the London Summit on Family Planning
To commemorate the third anniversary of the 2012 London Summit on Family Planning and creation of Family Planning 2020 (FP2020), FP2020 launched a 10-day “blog series celebrating the longstanding dedication of [their] global partners in upholding principles of rights and empowerment in family planning” (7/13).

Link to individual story

KFF Headquarters: 185 Berry St., Suite 2000, San Francisco, CA 94107 | Phone 650-854-9400
Washington Offices and Barbara Jordan Conference Center: 1330 G Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005 | Phone 202-347-5270

www.kff.org | Email Alerts: kff.org/email | facebook.com/KFF | twitter.com/kff

The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news, KFF is a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California.