The President’s Budget: What it Means for Malaria

Over the last decade, malaria programs such as the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund), and UN agencies have delivered over half a billion bednets to families in need. And we know these efforts are working – the World Health Organization estimates that more than 4.3 million lives have been saved since 2000. What’s more, deaths from malaria among children under five in Africa have declined 58%!

That’s definitely cause to celebrate, and here’s one more:

Recently, the President released his requested budget for Fiscal Year 2016. This budget signals the President’s priorities and is his opportunity to share with Congress and the American people his thoughts on how we should invest our taxpayer dollars. This budget also kicks off the “Budget and Appropriations Process,” where Congress and the Administration work together to decide how much money the U.S. will spend on all issues – including for malaria prevention efforts.

Nothing But Nets is thrilled to report that the President chose to continue active leadership in the fight against malaria! Here is what the President requested:

• $674 million in funding for PMI, a $4.5 million increase over what PMI received in FY15.
• $1.107 billion in funding for the Global Fund, which fulfills the President’s pledge to provide $1 for every $2 pledged by other donors to the Global Fund and completes our country’s three-year commitment to the Global Fund between 2014 and 2016.
• $132 million for UNICEF.

The budget also includes funding for malaria research and development through the Department of Defense. Our military is heavily involved in the R&D of new tools and drugs to treat and fight malaria – important because infectious diseases like malaria pose health and operational challenges to our military forces.
Your hard work last year helped make the Administration’s commitments possible, and we are excited to see what comes next. We will have more updates for you in the coming months and offer several ways that you can get involved – including contacting Congress in support of malaria programs! Your voice is a critical part of the decision-making process for both the Administration and Congress.  Together, we can defeat malaria!