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In Malawi, mosquito nets are the talk of the town

April 28, 2022

In Malawi, mosquito nets are the talk of the town

Although mosquito nets offer effective protection against malaria, they are under-used in Malawi. BACKUP Health and World Vision Malawi demonstrate a holistic approach to bringing about change.

Polio eradication: A new strategy for the final mile

June 9, 2021

Polio eradication: A new strategy for the final mile

The global incidence of polio cases has declined by 99% since 1988, but eradication of this devastating disease has remained elusive.

A special day for the global response to HIV/AIDS

June 9, 2021

A special day for the global response to HIV/AIDS

On 10 June 2021, the last day of the High Level Meeting on the Implementation of the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a new political declaration

World Malaria Day 2021: Efforts must continue full steam

April 23, 2021

World Malaria Day 2021: Efforts must continue full steam

Whilst malaria continues to claim hundreds of thousands of lives around the world each year, one small country can declare itself a big winner.

World TB Day: Germany’s commitment to ending tuberculosis

March 23, 2021

World TB Day: Germany’s commitment to ending tuberculosis

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, how does German Development Cooperation contribute to halting the deadliest infectious disease?

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HIV and other infectious diseases

Responding to HIV and other infectious diseases such as tuberculosis or malaria must remain a top priority.

COVID-19 is just one of many infectious diseases facing the world, and it is vital that it does not divert resources and efforts from other on-going challenges. More than 38 million people are currently living with HIV and about 690,000 people die of AIDS-related diseases every year (UNAIDS, 2020). Other infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, malaria or hepatitis C are similarly devastating. Although sub-Saharan Africa, Eastern Europe and Central Asia are the most affected regions, international mobility makes these communicable diseases a concern for global public health. 

Until the outbreak of COVID-19, joint efforts of governments, communities and international partners had led to a decline in new HIV infections by over a third since 2000, and around 16 million people had access to life-saving anti-retroviral treatment. Currently, however, a large proportion of health systems’ resources is devoted exclusively to fighting COVID-19, leaving other programmes, including those dedicated to the HIV response, underfunded: In southern Africa, for example, this led to an interruption of many HIV treatments in 2020, which, in turn, may result in more than 500,000 additional deaths in 2021, catapulting the region back to the mortality levels of 2008 (UNAIDS, 2020).

As one of the leading contributors to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, Germany is strongly committed to combatting the ravages of infectious diseases. A key priority for Germany is also to integrate interventions on specific diseases such as HIV into broader health systems and interventions, and promote multi-sectoral approaches to prevention.

The articles, events, studies and podcasts on this page present the efforts of German development cooperation to combat infectious diseases such as HIV around the world.

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