Mapping the Donor Landscape in Global Health: Malaria

Today’s global health aid landscape has a proliferation of different donors providing aid to low- and middle-income countries. This crowded climate can create challenges for effectively negotiating, coordinating and delivering programs – challenges that are particularly important in light of the current emphasis on achieving cost-effectiveness and “value for money” in global health programs.

This report maps the network of international assistance aimed at addressing the global impact of malaria.  The analysis identifies 27 different donors, comprising 24 nations providing bi-lateral support and 3 multilateral programs, providing assistance to 86 recipient countries over a three-year period through 2011.  Other key findings include:

• The Global Fund was by far the largest donor, providing 57% of all malaria international assistance; the next largest donor, the U.S., provided about one-quarter of all assistance (26%).  Together they accounted for 83% of global malaria assistance.
• On average, there were 3 donors present in each recipient country.  12 recipient countries had 7 or more donors, with 3 having 10 or more.  The countries with 10 or more donors present were: Mozambique (11), Democratic Republic of the Congo (10), and Tanzania (10).
• In every region the Global Fund provided more than 50% of malaria funding and in three regions, it was the source for over 90% of funding: North & Central America (98%), Far East Asia (95%), and the Middle East (91%).  The next largest donor after the Global Fund differed by region: sub-Saharan Africa (U.S., 29%), South & Central Asia (World Bank, 24%), South America (U.S., 19 %), Oceania (Australia, 18%), Middle East (Kuwait, 5%), Far East Asia (World Bank, 3%), and North & Central America (Spain, 2%).

This report is part of a series that examines the donor nations and multilateral organizations involved in addressing different global health challenges in recipient countries worldwide.  The reports aim at providing perspective on the geographic presence of global health donors and to enable more effective coordination and delivery of services globally and within individual recipient nations.