LONDON: Climate change and conflicts are damaging efforts to control the spread of three of the world’s deadliest infectious diseases, the head of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has said.
According to the Fund’s 2023 results report released on Monday global efforts to fight the diseases have largely recovered after being badly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
World expected to miss target of eradicating AIDS, TB and malaria
Peter Sands, executive director of the Global Fund said that due to the increasing challenges of climate change the world is expected to miss the target of eradicating AIDS, TB and malaria by 2030.
He said in 2022, 6.7 million people were treated for TB in the states where the Global Fund works more than ever before, and 1.4 million more people than in the previous year.
The Fund also supported 24.5 million people on antiretroviral therapy for HIV and provided 220 million mosquito nets.
The Fund in the report said that climate change is a major issue affecting the attempts to fight the deadliest diseases.
Read Also: Climate Change Threaten Fight Against AIDS, TB, and Malaria, Warns Global Fund
For instance, malaria is spreading to those parts of Africa that were previously too cold for the mosquito carrying the disease.
According to the report extreme weather events like floods are affecting health services, displacing communities, and causing a rise in infection in many different places.
It said in countries like Afghanistan, Myanmar, Sudan and Ukraine the treatment against viral diseases has become immensely challenging due to insecurity.
Peter Sands added this week that a high-level meeting on TB at the UN General Assembly will be held adding that there is still hope for more focus on the disease.
