The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has announced new procurement agreements with suppliers of anti-malaria drugs that could save the fund more than $100 million over two years.

Working with the UK Department for International Development, the Global Fund and its partners — the World Health Organization, the President's Malaria Initiative, UNICEF, UNITAID, and the Clinton Health Access Initiative — reached two-year contracts with nine suppliers of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT), the mainstay of malaria treatment. In addition to projected savings through price reductions, the framework agreements are expected to bring improvements in pipeline visibility, delivery performance, and market sustainability while encouraging local production. According to the Global Fund, expanding access to ACTs in countries where malaria is endemic has been a key factor behind the 49 percent decrease since 2000 in mortality rates from the disease in Africa.

"A smarter approach to procurement of high-volume medicines means more lives can be saved," said Global Fund executive director Mark Dybul. "This is a great case of creating value for money, and increasing impact."

"This ACT procurement strategy addresses the serious shortcomings in the previous approaches including price volatility, delivery performance and market sustainability," said Christopher Game, chief procurement officer at the Global Fund. "By engaging in long-term relationships with suppliers and by providing an integrated approach to the market, we can invest more strategically, maximize the Global Fund's commercial position, and increase value for money."