The Commission announces new global health commitments at the ‘One Health’ Summit

The European Commission plans to allocate €700 million to the Global Fund to fight HIV, tuberculosis and malaria. It will also invest €46.5 million to strengthen public health security in Africa and Europe, with a particular focus on combating antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and €50 million in research and development to tackle AMR and neglected tropical diseases. The Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jozef Síkela, made these announcements at the‘One Health’ Summittaking place today in Lyon, France. These announcements underscore the European Union’s continued leadership in global health and its commitment to strengthening the resilience of health systems worldwide.

These announcements form part of the new Global Health Resilience Initiative, announced by President von der Leyen in her2025 State of the Union address, which is set to be launched before the summer. The initiative will provide an opportunity to clearly define the EU’s priorities and establish concrete pathways for effective and efficient action on global health.

€700 million for the eighth replenishment of the Global Fund.

The Commission plans to commit a total of €700 million to the eighth replenishment of the Global Fund, of which €185 million will be made available immediately under the current long-term budget. Country-level grants under the eighth replenishment will be implemented between 2027 and 2029.

The Global Fund is a global partnership to combat HIV, tuberculosis and malaria, which has saved millions of lives and significantly reduced mortality from these three diseases, whilst investing in resilient and sustainable health systems and global health security. It focuses in particular on the most vulnerable populations, especially women and girls, who often face barriers to accessing vital health services.

Team Europe, comprising the Commission and the EU Member States, remains one of the Global Fund’s main drivers, with a total pledge ofover €3 billionfor the eighth replenishment. Since the Global Fund’s inception in 2002, Team Europe’s contributions have accounted for approximately one-third of total donations.

New EU programmes worth €46.5 million for cooperation under the ‘One Health’ initiative and the response to antimicrobial resistance.

EU investments worth €46.5 million will help to consolidate Africa’s health security framework and foster collaboration between European and African stakeholders, thereby strengthening the health workforce’s capacity for the ‘One Health’ approach and the response to antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This funding will support the surveillance, prevention and control of AMR at national, regional and continental levels, strengthen laboratory and diagnostic capacity across Africa, and increase cooperation between European and African health agencies over the next five years.

Implementation will be carried out in collaboration with key partners, including the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, the African Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the European Food Safety Authority, the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership, and the International Centre for Solutions to Antimicrobial Resistance.

Antimicrobial resistance is one of the most serious threats to global health. If no action is taken, it is projected to cause up to 10 million deaths annually by 2050, of which 4.5 million would occur in Africa. Antimicrobial resistance is already linked to more than35,000 deathsannually in Europe and represents an estimated cost of €11 billion per year to European healthcare systems.

New R&D investments worth €50 million in antimicrobial resistance and neglected tropical diseases.

The European Commission will invest €30 million to support the development of new antibiotics and medical countermeasures against antimicrobial resistance.

The funding, managed by KfW, the German development bank, will support the non-profit organisations Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator (CARB-X) and Global Antibiotic Research & Development Partnership (GARDP) to accelerate early-stage antibacterial research and to drive forward advanced-stage clinical development projects, thereby ensuring a diversified and continuous pipeline of medical countermeasures against antimicrobial resistance.

To further improve protection against global health threats, the Commission signed a €20 million contribution agreement with the French Development Agency (AFD) for the implementation of activities by the non-profit research organisation Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi), in support of the development of medical treatments for dengue fever. This project was launched in March in response to the anticipated growing need for medical countermeasures against vector-borne diseases in the EU, driven by climate change.

Fund

The European Union’s commitment to global health is reflected in theEU Global Health Strategy,adopted in 2022, and in theGlobal Gatewaystrategy, which identifies health as a key investment priority.

The EU’s global commitment to health focuses on strengthening health systems, improving health security, supporting local manufacturing of medical devices and advancing universal health coverage, particularly in partner countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

The EU’s participation in the ‘One Health’ Summit marks a milestone on the path towards the forthcoming Global Health Resilience Initiative, which will seek to generate a lasting impact for people around the world. Thepublic consultationon the initiative iscurrentlyopen until 13 April.

More information: European Commission.