Lyon (AFP)
Pressed by civil society to increase its contribution to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, France tried Wednesday to close ranks around a fundraising goal difficult to close.
In front of some 700 participants, French Health Minister Agnès Buzyn urged her contributors to "send a strong signal", on the first of two days of conference in Lyon (center-east of France), intended to take stock of the financing of the Fund over the next three years.
"All of us, governments, businesses, researchers, NGOs, citizens today have the responsibility to step up our investments," said Buzyn, while the budget for fiscal year 2020-2022, set at $ 14 billion, may not be reached Thursday, during his announcement by President Emmanuel Macron to a dozen heads of state and government.
The AIDS association Aides assured Wednesday that this floor remained distant, estimating the deficit of donations between 200 and 500 million.
"We are a little worried, even angry, because despite all the efforts of civil society, associations and NGOs for this summit to be a success, the goal of 14 billion does not seem achievable," he said. AFP Aurélien Beaucamp, President of Aides.
A group of 12 civil society organizations, including Aides, Oxfam, Solidarité Sida and Sidaction, called in a statement "an increase of the French contribution of at least 25%".
This increase, which corresponds to 270 million more than the 1.08 billion currently paid by France, is, according to the collective, the only way to reach Thursday the goal set.
At the UN General Assembly, the French president had endorsed the goal of 14 billion, but the Elysee recognized this week that any "significant increase beyond 12.2 billion dollars" - harvested three years ago at the last refinancing conference - "will be considered a success".
Asked by the TV channel TMC, Emmanuel Macron said that France "will continue not only to be a major donor but that it will increase its commitment". She will remain the second contributor to the fund, he assured without giving figures.
The billionaire Bill Gates has set the "very ambitious" target of 14 billion, but has been quoted by the press as saying "a substantial increase of more than 10%" compared to the fifth exercise, which he considers "a great achievement". .
As the first private contributor to the organization through his foundation, he has already announced that his contribution for the new fiscal year will rise from $ 600 million to $ 700 million.
- "At the height" -
During this first day, all the actors echoed the motto of the conference: "Accelerate the movement".
In opening, the executive director of the Peter Sands Global Fund highlighted the "huge progress" made in reducing the deaths of these three pandemics.
The Fund claims 32 million lives saved since its creation in 2002, and in 2018, in countries where the Global Fund invests, 18.9 million people were on antiretroviral treatment for HIV, 5.3 million were tested and treated for HIV. Tuberculosis and 131 million mosquito nets were distributed to protect families from malaria.
However, Mr Sands has confronted the participants with an alternative, which he believes is crucial, to eradicate the three pandemics by 2030.
"Are we accelerating the movement or are we backing down against adversaries as formidable as AIDS, tuberculosis or malaria, either we win or we lose." (Through) your decisions (. ..) you make this choice, "he warned.
"It is necessary that additional efforts be provided by all", also insisted in the tribune the president of Burkina Faso Roch Marc Christian Kaboré. "We will succeed together or we will all fail," said French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian.
Fifteen donor countries have already announced their contribution, ensuring three quarters of the target amount.
The achievement of the final target will depend on the amounts committed by the private sector and by France, one of the founders of the Fund, which has not increased its contribution since 2010.
"France will live up to its status as the second largest contributor", with more than 4.6 billion euros in cumulative donations since 2002, assured this week the Élysée.
Macron's announcement is scheduled for Thursday at 09:00 (07:00 GMT).
© 2019 AFP