A global health fund has come under severe criticism over its decision to partner with Heineken, a move campaigners warn will “undermine and subvert” alcohol policy implementation in Africa.



In an open letter to the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria, an alliance of more than 2,000 health organisations voiced misgivings about the alliance and called for its immediate end.

“We are deeply concerned about this partnership and its implications for global health,” read a letter signed by Katie Dain of the NCD Alliance, Kristina Sperkova of the anti-alcohol group IOGT International, and Sally Casswell of the Global Alcohol Policy Alliance.

“A partnership such as this with the Global Fund is of great value to Heineken. It redirects attention from the costs of harmful use of alcohol and positions Heineken to governments, the public and the global community as a legitimate partner in implementing sustainable development solutions.”

Heineken, the world’s second-biggest brewer, is expected to help the Global Fund with the logistics of reaching healthcare facilities and patients in remote areas, and to “further advance a common goal” of fighting disease in Africa, according to a statement released last week.

The Global Fund, an alliance of governments, civil society and the private sector that invests $4bn a year to fight infectious diseases, also recently announced partnerships with consumer goods group Unilever and Swiss bank Lombard Odier.



“The Global Fund is a strong believer in the power of public-private partnerships in order to accelerate progress,” said Peter Sands, incoming executive director of the Global Fund.



“We are particularly excited to leverage the expertise of Heineken as we develop innovative tools and approaches that will promote HIV prevention and behaviour change. We also look forward to sharpening our logistics planning skills to better support our implementing partners’ efforts to deliver health services and commodities wherever they are needed. These two efforts are vital to improving health and wellbeing in Africa.”

In a statement, Heineken CEO Jean-François van Boxmeer said: “Heineken has been present in Africa for over 100 years, and saw first-hand the severity of the Aids epidemic on communities. We provided employees with voluntary testing for HIV and treatment for HIV, tuberculosis and malaria, among others, from the start.

“We continue to do this today and recognise there is still a lot to do. Evolving our partnership with the Global Fund will allow us to work together in order to end these epidemics in Africa.”

Health experts and campaigners have largely decried the announcement, pointing to evidence that harmful use of alcohol increases the risk factor of both HIV and tuberculosis.

“The very nature of a partnership with the alcohol industry is very alarming,” said Dain.

“We shouldn’t see this as some kind of legitimate partner in sustainable development or global health. It’s a double standard for an institution focusing on HIV, TB and malaria to be building partnerships with companies and industries that contribute to the burden of these diseases, particularly in Africa.”

The NCD Alliance chief, whose network consists of a group of 2,000 organisations fighting non-communicable diseases, also warned that the scope to increase alcohol consumption in Africa is likely to be attractive to companies like Heineken. Dain said firms may use public-private partnerships such as the Global Fund-Heineken alliance to “play, shape and develop the alcohol policies of national governments [in Africa]”.

A number of global health experts used social media to voice their concerns.

“As regulations get tough and shares dwindle, the food, beverage and tobacco industries are targeting [low middle-income countries] with their processed food, sweet soft drinks, tobacco and alcohol,” tweeted Dr Senait Fisseha, a key adviser to the World Health Organisation. “It’s scandalous to create market entry under the auspices of aid and development.”

Anthony Costello, the WHO director for maternal, child and adolescent health, tweeted: “The privatisation of public health. Not only private Swiss banks. The Global Fund is in alliance with a huge alcohol company.”