SOUTH AFRICA – Five private sector partners announced new pledges for the Global Fund’s Sixth Replenishment during the World Economic Forum on Africa.
These private sectors aim to create public-private partnerships in Africa, build the voice and advocacy of business leaders, mobilize resources, and find innovative solutions to fight the three diseases.
Goodbye Malaria pledged R85 million (about US$5.5 million) to the Global Fund to expand a grant that aims to eliminate cross-border malaria transmission in Mozambique, South Africa and Eswatini.
Project Last Mile, GBCHealth and Zenysis Technologies announced that they will increase the effectiveness of health programs through innovations.
Zenysis, a data and artificial intelligence company, will invest an additional US$3.5 million by the end of 2021 to help five more Global Fund-supported countries harness the power of big data and AI to transform their health systems
Africa Health Business, a health consultancy based in Nairobi has pledged to support the mobilization of African business. These co-investments will total more than US$23 million. It will do so by working with businesses to increase their engagement in health.
Executive Director of the Global Fund Peter Sands, said; “We can only succeed in our fight to end AIDS, TB and malaria by working with private sector partners,”
“We need the private sector’s resources, innovation and know-how to counter the threat of drug resistance, to extend our reach and to build stronger health systems – all of which will save more lives.”
Today’s announcements represent diverse support for health solutions, with the private sector and other essential partners such as the South African Ministry of Health, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Co-founder and CEO of Goodbye Malaria, Sherwin Charles, said; “Being part of the private sector in countries that live with the devastating effects of these three diseases, it is with a sense of pride that Goodbye Malaria commits R85 million to the Global Fund, targeting malaria elimination in Southern Africa,”
“This represents an overall increase of 55% over our contribution in the previous Replenishment. Further, our contribution will unlock additional funds from the £100 million malaria match funding of the UK government.”
To address the challenges of health challenge, the Global Fund and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation joined with The Coca-Cola Company in 2010 to form Project Last Mile, and USAID joined in 2014.
This public-private partnership leverages Coca-Cola’s logistical, supply chain management and marketing expertise to support African governments in delivering lifesaving medicines and supplies to the hardest-to-reach communities.
