Global AIDS funding is still only half of what will be needed by 2005 in low and middle-income countries, Dr Peter Piot of UNAIDS said today.
According to a UNAIDS report on global HIV and AIDS funding, US$4.7 billion will be spent on AIDS in resource limited countries in 2003. This includes $1.6 billion in international aid, $1 billion from other international sources, including the Global Fund, $1 billion in domestic expenditure and $1 billion of household expenditure.
Even though this represents a nine-fold increase in AIDS expenditure in middle and low-income countries since 1996, UNAIDS is stressing that much still needs to be done to find the $10.5 billion a year needed by 2005. Dr Peter Piot, director of UNAIDS said: “Even with recent increases in AIDS spending, the mismatch between need and funding continues to be one of the biggest obstacles in the struggle to control the epidemic”, and with $4.7 billion of expenditure this year “we are half way there in closing the AIDS funding gap [but] there is still half way to go.”
UNAIDS is stressing thatThe $10.5 billion needed in 2005 would be just enough to provide a “barebones” package of prevention, treatment, care and support programmes in low and middle-income countries. It is projected that expenditure will have to increase by a further 50% to over $15 billion in 2007 to meet the HIV needs of poorer countries.
There have been calls – most recently in the June 20th edition of the British Medical Journal to spend money on prevention rather than antiretrovirals in resource limited settings. However, as the UNAIDS statement makes clear, expenditure on prevention is increasing along with treatment budgets, and prevention initiatives are not being sacrificed for antiretroviral programmes.
Recent funding pledges by the US and EU would, even if fully realised, provide $1.2 billion a year by 2005, leaving another $5 billion to be found from other sources. Dr Piot said: “We have come a long way in committing additional resources to fight HIV/AIDS but much more still needs to be done. Additional resources need to be mobilised at boh international and national levels if we are to meet the $10.5 billion by 2005.”