PRESS STATEMENT: Global Civil Society Reaction to Japanese Announcement of Global Fund Pledge
27 May 2008
(Tokyo) Global civil society organizations reacted with strong disappointment to the announcement today by Japanese Prime Minister Fukuda of a contribution from Japan to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria of "$560 million for the coming few years."
Civil society called on Japan to immediately commit to paying its contribution over two years and to commit to re-evaluate their contribution at the upcoming Global Fund Replenishment Meeting and Review in March 2009.
Today's announcement, which comes 6 weeks before the G8 Summit in Toyako, could mean the Japanese contribution will not increase, despite an increasing gap between the needs of developing countries, and available resources from donor governments.
Today's announcement falls far short of what Japan should be committing as the world's second largest economy, and based on increasing requests from countries for Global Fund funding.
"As the 2008 G8 President, Japan has the opportunity to show strong global leadership on health this year, but unfortunately they have not shown leadership today," said Dr. Françoise Ndayishimiye of the Burundian Network of HIV positive people. "Instead they are undermining their promise to support the goal of universal access to AIDS treatment, care and prevention by 2010, and to reach the Millennium Development Goals by 2015."
This announcement comes four days before the arrival 45 African heads of state in Yokohama for the Fourth Tokyo Conference on African Development (TICAD), hosted by the Japanese government. "With 80% of global AIDS burden concentrated in Africa, how will successful development in Africa be possible when major donors such as Japan do not scale up their commitments to fighting the three diseases?" asked Dr. Cheikh Tidiane Tall of the African Council of AIDS Service Organizations (AfriCASO).
For more information, contact:
Bobby John (Global Health Advocates) and Asia Russell (Health GAP): +81 (0) 80 2109 6382 or asia@healthgap.org/bj@bjohn.org
