The European Commission is set to significantly cut its contributions to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, ending a decades-long trend of increasing contributions to the multilateral health organization.

According to research by Health Policy Watch, the Commission plans to pledge €700 million over a four-year span from 2026 to 2029 at the Global Fund Board meeting starting on Wednesday (11 February).

As the overall sum stretches a smaller amount of money over a longer period of time compared to previous commitments, this will mean a reduction of roughly €60 million per year  – a cut of 26.5%.

During the previous replenishment cycle, the Commission pledged €715 million over three years from 2023 to 2025, which at the time marked a 30% increase over the prior commitment.

The Commission did not respond to a query by Health Policy Watch before publication of the article.

Asked for a comment, a Global Fund spokesperson confirmed that several donors who are not yet in a position to make public announcements have provided “strong assurances of their continued support”. The Global Fund is still in “active discussions” with several partners, including the European Commission, to finalize their commitments.

However, they refrained from sharing any further details of the negotiations.

Cuts strike amidst broader global funding pull-back

This drastic pull-back would line up with a broader retreat by major Western donors. At the Global Fund’s pledging conference in November 2025 – at which the Commission failed to submit a commitment due to ongoing internal negotiations – the United States reduced its contribution by $1.4 billion under its “America First” strategy. Germany cut its funding from €1.4 billion to €1 billion amidst a broader shift in budgetary priorities.

As a result, the Global Fund had only raised $11.4 billion in November, $6.6 billion short of its $18 billion target for the next three years with key countries and groups, including France and Japan, still missing at that time. The 8th Replenishment total amounts are likely to land well over $12 billion for 2026 to 2028, short over $2 billion compared to the previous cycle, sources confirmed.

Emergency money for foreseeable expenditures

With its annual budget for 2026 already spread thin, the EU Commission is mobilizing €150 million from a reserve fund designated for unforeseen crises to cover this year’s contribution to the Global Fund.

But this use of an “emergency cushion” within the Neighbourhood, Development, and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI) to fund a predictable replenishment cycle is concerning, said Barry Andrews, chair of the Committee on Development, at a budget hearing on 5 February.

He reminded the Commission that the cushion is legally reserved “to respond to unforeseen circumstances, new needs, or emerging challenges.”

With the €150 million now allocated to the Global Fund and other money attributed to developments in Greenland and Syria, the cushion is already “nearly depleted,” as Myriam Ferran, Deputy Director-General at the Directorate-General for International Partnerships, admitted. It leaves only €159 million for the next two years to handle any genuine unexpected global crises.

Remaining funds not yet approved

The remaining €550 million until 2029 “will be factored in the new Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF),” said Ferran at the European Parliament’s Budget Committee meeting last week.

The MFF is the EU’s long-term budget that sets the limits on spending over a seven-year period. The current MFF ends in 2027, and the next one (2028 to 2034) has not yet been adopted.

This approach drew sharp rebukes during committee oversight. Right-wing parliamentarians characterized the move as “budgetary madness,” noting that for 2026, the Commission is creating debt and pushing it into future years as it is “spending money that you don’t have”.

No long-term budget for global health

With the MFF already under pressure, European global health funding is facing a precarious future, raising fears among health advocates that it will be stripped of priority in the EU’s long-term strategy.

In its proposal for the next MFF, the Commission confirmed there will be “no dedicated health window”, making sure that budget appropriations are ringfenced.

Instead, it is to be split between a “global” pillar and “geographic” pillars – essentially regional accounts assigned to specific areas like sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, or Asia – sparking concerns over a shift away from multilateralism.

The Commission argues that this allows funding to be more flexible and better linked with the EU’s strategic goals. A Commission spokesperson stated that while there is no health window in Global Europe, there will be a health budget in the new European Competitiveness Fund dedicated to increasing economic growth.

Critics warn that contributions to global health initiatives will have to keep pace with infrastructure, digitalization, and security projects. In the “sub-Saharan Africa” pillar, for example, a proposal to fund community health workers would have to compete directly for the same Euros against a project to build a highway or equip border guards, an EU official close to the negotiations told Health Policy Watch.

Image Credits: Felix Sassmannshausen, Felix Sassmannshausen/Health Policy Watch, European Union/Christophe Licoppe.