Minister assures South Africa's HIV/Aids funding remains stable despite US cuts

SOUTH  Africa's HIV/Aids funding is not collapsing despite recent defunding by the American aid. This was a message from the Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi.

On Thursday, during a media briefing in Pretoria, Motsoaledi assured South Africans that the country’s HIV/Aids programme was not at risk of collapsing due to the withdrawal of US foreign aid funding through the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (Pepfar)

This follows the withdrawal of Pepfar. US President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal in January 2025. Motsoaledi reiterated that the country accounts for the majority of the HIV/Aids funding.

Earlier this year, President Trump withdrew Pepfar funding for African countries for 90 days.

“It is inconceivable that out of R46.8 billion spent by the country on the HIV/AIDS programme, the withdrawal of R7.9 billion by [United States] President Trump will immediately lead to a collapse of the entire programme. We believe this is inconceivable. Ladies and gentlemen, we want to put this categorically clear that under no circumstances will we allow this massive work performed over a period of over a decade and a half to collapse and go up in smoke because President Trump has decided to do what he has done," the minister stated.

There have been reports that funding cuts, particularly from the US, have been cited as a reason behind South Africa’s startling decline in viral load testing.

During his State of the Nation Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa said the US funding represents about 17% of South Africa’s HIV spend while Reuters recently reported that data from the National Health Laboratory Service, a government entity, showed that viral load testing declined by up to 21% among key groups in the last two months.

In spite of not having alternative plans of funding in the interim, the minister said the country will not beg the Trump administration adding that the US-backed programme directly supported more than 16 000 health workers, with over 7,000 affected said to remain in their roles until September 2025, thanks to interim funding provided by the US Centers for Disease Control.

"I wish we had any plans. At the present moment, all we can do is present our plans to funders. I have given you a long list of funders we have met. There is not a single one who said, ‘No, we will not help’. But up until today, there is not a single one who has come to the party. Either private funders or government around – there is not a single one," he said.