Fully fund the Global Fund: Harm reduction brief

A fully funded Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund) is crucial for harm reduction in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). With only eight years left to reach the Sustainable Development Goals and end AIDS, TB and malaria, advocates called upon donors and governments to make their most ambitious pledges to date and fully fund the Global Fund to ensure access to harm reduction in LMICs.

Harm Reduction International (HRI), the Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA), the International Network of People Who Use Drugs (INPUD) and the Global Fund Advocates Network (GFAN) released a joint briefing explaining the crisis in harm reduction funding, detailing the pivotal role of the Global Fund in global harm reduction, especially in the context of donor transition and identifying the cost of inaction.

A fully funded Global Fund can:

• Protect investments and progress to date in people-centred, rights-based harm reduction and HIV prevention for people who use drugs in LMICs.
• Ensure community-led advocacy as a stand-alone and in addition to civil society advocacy for the reform of laws and policies that impede the HIV response in LMICs.
• Continue to provide leadership in global health governance, including through building strong global health processes which have impact beyond the life of a Global Fund grant. This protective influence in the context of responsible transitions to domestically funded harm reduction programmes will continue and transitioning countries will be more likely to fund harm reduction programmes informed and influenced by communities, ensuring their relevance, quality and effectiveness.
• Continue to strengthen community systems as part of the broader health infrastructure for effective responses to HIV and pandemic preparedness.
• Support the continued expansion and scale up of harm reduction under Global Fund grants, providing lifesaving services to people who use drugs and their communities.

Download the brief here.