The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria announced this week a windfall of $1.6 billion dollars in additional funding available over the next two years. The statement points to “strategic decisions made by the Board,” including cutting staff by a surprising 7.4 percent. The new amount also includes a combined billion dollars in donations from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Japan.
This news was roundly celebrated in places like Burma that were dealt a big blow with cuts to the Global Fund last year. The Guardian reports this week that “in a country where nearly 33% of people live below the poverty line, thousands of Burmese are unlikely ever to be able to afford ART, which, according to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), cost $30 a month.”
