WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today applauded Senate passage of S.Res.318, a bipartisan resolution offered by himself and Ranking Member Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) to support the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The resolution passed out of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee earlier this year on September 26, 2019.
“It is notable that just one day after World AIDS Day on December 1 st, the U.S. Senate came together once again to unanimously support the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria," said Risch. "Since 2002, and in close partnership with the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) program, the Global Fund has helped reduce the number of deaths caused by AIDS, TB, and malaria by 40% annually, resulting in 32 million lives saved.
“Yet, despite this remarkable progress, a lot of work remains to be done. In 2018 alone, an estimated 1.7 million people became newly infected with AIDS. Key populations, including adolescent girls, remain particularly vulnerable to infection. In some places, the commitment of partner governments to transparency and accountability has been called into question. We cannot afford to lose focus. In partnership with PEPFAR, the Global Fund must now work harder than ever to break down the barriers that keep vulnerable men, women, and children outside of prevention and treatment programs, strategically target resources, and hold partners accountable for results.”
During the Global Fund’s sixth replenishment conference, held in Lyon, France, in October 2019, donors pledged a record $14 billion to support effective prevention and treatment programs. With those resources secured, the Global Fund is expected to help reduce the number of deaths due to AIDS, TB, and malaria by nearly 50 percent, avert 2.3 million infections, and save an additional 16 million lives.
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