HIV, TB and Malaria: Results of Global Fund Projects Showcased at Inaugural Open Door Day

Cameroon organized its maiden HIV, TB and malaria Open-Door Day in the capital, Yaoundé, on June 18, to showcase Global Fund-sponsored health projects in the country.

The country’s Public Health Minister, Dr. Manaouda Malachie, representing the Prime Minister, Joseph Dion Ngute, chaired the event themed, “Performance and Accountability: The Key Results of the Global Fund’s Financing and the Expertise France Initiative against Malaria, HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis in Cameroon.”

“We organized this day to amplify sensitization and advocacy. We want to get everyone involved. It will no longer be a single actor fighting against these diseases, but the entire national and international community. We are calling on communities, parliamentarians, institutions, and the private and public sectors to mobilize to fight these diseases.”

As external funding dwindles, the government of Cameroon is exploring other funding alternatives to continue the HIV/TB and malaria elimination agenda.

Government members, health organizations, civil society organizations and community health organizations turned up for the event to commend the Global Fund’s over 15 years commitment to saving lives in the country.

HIV, TB and Malaria Prevalence

According to the 2024 Population-Based HIV Impact Assessment (CamPHIA) 2024/2025 report, 509,766 people in Cameroon are HIV positive. This figure represents a 2.6% prevalence rate.

The National Malaria Control Programme(NMCP) recorded 2,943,674 malaria cases in 2025, alongside 1,261 deaths, 909 of them children under five. Malaria remains a public health concern in the country, and Cameroon is the 11th country most affected by the disease worldwide.

Tuberculosis data shows that 38,472 cases, about 132 infections per 100,000 people, were recorded in the country in 2024. The mortality rate linked to TB is 17 per 100,000 people.

Spin-Offs of the Global Fund’s Grants in Cameroon

The Global Fund began financing public health programmes to combat HIV, TB and malaria in Cameroon in December 2004. Since then, the international health organization has remained committed to strengthening the health system, helping vulnerable populations and partnering with community leaders to address health problems.

Saving lives and preventing infections in Cameroon has costed the Global Fund an estimated 750 billions FCFA for HIV, TB and malaria control . This amount is stratified as follows: HIV/AIDS, 418 billion FCFA; tuberculosis, 42 billion FCFA; HIV/TB co-infection, 39 billion FCFA; and malaria, 270 billion FCFA.

According to the Ministry of Public Health, this investment has enabled the procurement of antiretroviral drugs for about 450,000 persons with living with HIV, provided treatment for close to 30,000 TB patients, and facilitated the distribution of insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs) distributed to about 890,000 homes.

In addition to this are related projects sponsored by « Expertise France », particularly “Equité Access Palu,” carried out by Impact Santé Afrique, the secretariat for the Global Fund Advocates Network (GFAN) and the Civil Society for Malaria Elimination (CS4ME). The “Equité Access Palu,” is aimed at streamlining inequalities in access to malaria prevention and treatment, especially in vulnerable communities.

“We were able to distribute mosquito nets to orphanages in Cameroon, empower community leaders to eliminate malaria, and break gender barriers regarding the fight against malaria,” Amélie Claire MedjouKeng, gender expert at Impact Santé Afrique, told CRTV Web.

Another key actor of the national response to HIV, TB and malaria is Expertise France. Expertise France has been instrumental in strengthening health systems and fighting HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), and malaria in Cameroon. The regional health adviser at Expertise France, Prof. Christophe Vanhecke, presented a report on his country’s investment in health projects in Cameroon during the inaugural HIV, TB and malaria Open-Door Day in Yaoundé. He stated that Expertise France remains dedicated to financing ongoing health infrastructure and projects in Cameroon. »

“France is the second historic partner of the Global Fund and spent over 1.6 billion euros for the 7th Global Fund cycle . The current international context no longer permits such investments to be made. France has made a commitment of 660million euros for the 8th replenishment of the Global Fund, and we are still among the big sponsors,” Prof. Christophe Vanhecke, regional health adviser at « Expertise France », said.

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria remains one of the principal donors to Cameroon’s national response . For the current funding cycle, the Fund has allocated about 205,149,000 euros, approximately 134 billion FCFA to the country’s national programme.

Kathy Neba Sina