Africa: High-Level Resource Mobilization Conference to Eliminate Viral Hepatitis

17 May 2023
World Health Organization (Geneva)
press release

The Hepatitis Fund and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) will partner on the inaugural Global Hepatitis Resource Mobilization Conference taking place in Geneva on 17 May 2023. The high-level conference will be hosted by the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 2 countries with high burdens of hepatitis C and hepatitis B respectively. The event is a global call to action to boost financial and political commitment towards viral hepatitis elimination by 2030.

Chelsea Clinton, Vice Chair of the board of directors for the Clinton Health Access Initiative, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and former New Zealand Prime Minister and current Hepatitis Fund Ambassador Helen Clark will address the event, which will also be attended by a number of health ministers from high burden countries including, Cambodia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Rwanda and Viet Nam, key global funders, including the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and Unitaid, and civil society representatives. Dr Meg Doherty, Director of WHO's Global HIV, Hepatitis, and Sexually Transmitted Infections Programmes, will also speak on a panel The Case for Hepatitis Elimination - Expert Opinions.

Viral hepatitis is the seventh leading cause of mortality worldwide. Despite a cure for Hepatitis C (HCV) and a vaccine for Hepatitis B (HBV), both viruses affect more than 350 million people, with 90% of infections concentrated in low- and middle-income countries. Every year, over 1.1 million people die from a hepatitis-related illness, and 3 million are newly infected. If not addressed, viral hepatitis deaths are projected to outnumber HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria deaths combined by 2040. Despite this, the global health threat of viral hepatitis is hugely neglected and underfunded.

The conference aims to raise significant funds to support investment in countries where there is already political commitment and initial action has been taken towards implementing a national plan. These catalytic funds will help kick-start implementation or significantly accelerate progress towards achieving the country's goals. The target amount for this collective effort is US$150 million.

Read the original article on WHO.

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