Today in Geneva, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria announced it has provided 90,000 more people with HIV/AIDS treatment in the first six months of this year, bringing the total number of HIV/AIDS patients the fund treats up to 220,000. This 70 percent increase put the fund ahead of its midyear targets. The Global Fund said it hopes to provide 400,000 people treatment by year-end and 1.6 million people treatment by 2010.

The fund said 600,000 people are now receiving TB treatment through the effort, which is primarily funded through donations from developed-world countries. The five-year target is to extend treatment to 3.5 million people.

While "programs are on track to reach these targets set for HIV/AIDS and TB, [programs] are behind on targets for malaria," said the group, which has distributed only 3.1 million insecticide-impregnated bed nets to fight malaria-carrying mosquitoes, rather than the targeted 108 million. The delay comes in part because funding has been focused on developing new, more effective drugs and strengthening malaria programs in high-prevalence nations.

Since its 2001 launch, the Global Fund has disbursed $1.4 billion for more than 300 programs in 127 countries. Over half the fund's allocations go fight HIV/AIDS, while 31 percent is spent on malaria and 13 percent on TB.

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