I suspect many of you reading this are wondering what the Global Fund is and that is OK, as it is not necessarily something that Joe Average knows about. I only know as the amazing people at ONE helped to peel the scales back from my eyes and now I actively seek out information about the positive steps being taken towards a fairer world where extreme poverty is being eradicated and preventable diseases minimised.
Let me explain a little - The Global Fund is a public, private partnership, where Governments, companies, consumers (via the RED brand) and private donors come together to pledge money into the fund that specifically fights HIV, tuberculosis and malaria.
Every three years the fund needs to be replenished and there is a conference currently in Montréal, Quebec where all the the donors are making their pledges and forging plans for how this cost-effective initiative will continue.
Why should you be interested?
- Because 20 million lives have been saved since 2002 due to the strategic and targeted health programmes that have been put in place.
- Because most countries have met or exceeded the Millennium Development target of reversing the spread of the three diseases.
- Because the Global Fund partnership is now on track to save 22 million lives by the end of 2016.
The aim is for a US$13 billion replenishment and at the moment it looks unsure as to whether this will happen as the UK have not made their pledge yet and many feel nervous that our new Government leadership are not making international development a priority.
If the US$13 billion target is met this will save up to 8 extra million lives (making a total of 30-32 million lives saved by the Global Fund Partnership up to 2020), avert 300 million new infections and deliver US$290 billion in economic gains. It is really big stuff.
#PovertyIsSexist
Any regular readers will know that I regularly work with ONE and I've been particularly passionate about their #Povertyissexist campaign. Time and time again research is proving that women and girls are disproportionately adversely affected by poverty and that by helping them to rise above it, the whole world starts to be a better place.
To invest in the global fund is a way of fighting for girls and women everywhere because it is true, poverty is sexist.
ONE's #Povertyissexist has been hugely successful with 46M impressions on Twitter but as always there is more work to be done and this is why they are behind the Global Fund and will have representatives at the replenishment conference. Two of those people are Patricia and her daughter Consolata, a powerful mother-daughter activist team who are making it their life's work to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS in Kenya and empower the women and girls of their community. Have a look at them on video and I challenge you not to be caught up in their vision.
How crazy is it, that in this day and age 700 young woman a day are still being infected with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa? That's around 5000 women a week and many of those are infected through forced intercourse. It is no wonder that 3 out of 4 young adults who get HIV are female.
Just 2 Minutes Please -
So I ask you to join me and to sign the petition that ONE are currently running to help girls everywhere and if you too are passionate that the world become a fairer place then join the movement:
Website: https://www.one.org/join
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ONECampaign and https://twitter.com/ONEcampaignUK
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/onecampaign/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ONE and https://www.facebook.com/ONEgirlswomen/
Snapchat: onecampaign
Thanks for your time and love, Mich x
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