Lab technologists preparing sputum samples to realize bacteria cultures. Kwanele Dlamini (left), MSF Lab Technologist, & Nobuhle Matsabula (right), MoH Microscopist. National TB Reference Laboratory , Government Hospital, Mbabane, Swaziland. Photograph by Alexis Huguet
Report |

Burden sharing or burden shifting?

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Photograph by Alexis Huguet

After a decade of strong commitments to fight the twin epidemics of HIV and tuberculosis (TB), a decline in international funding and the rapid shifting of the financial burden to affected countries is in danger of reversing lifesaving gains and causing an ‘epidemic rebound’ in some countries. To highlight this reality and the expanding gaps in the HIV and TB responses, MSF produced a report analyzing the financial and systemic challenges in 9 countries where it runs HIV/TB programmes: Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Guinea, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Myanmar, Zimbabwe.

Published ahead of the Global Fund’s 6th replenishment conference in Lyon (France, 8-10 October 2019), the report documents how international funding shortfalls and insufficient domestic resources availability are already causing wide-ranging gaps in HIV and TB diagnosis, prevention and care services; stockouts of essential medicines; and are threatening programmes targeting people with specific needs, such as migrants and people with advanced HIV.