A critical shift is underway in global health financing. As fiscal pressures intensify across low- and middle-income countries and debt burdens continue to rise, the space for health investment is narrowing—placing at risk hard-won gains in the responses to HIV, TB, and malaria.

At the same time, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has communicated reduced funding envelopes for the upcoming Grant Cycle 8, alongside country allocation letters outlining provisional budgets and guidance for the next phase of national planning.

In this moment of constraint and opportunity, communities are called to act with urgency and precision.

Introducing the GC8 Community Toolkit

This toolkit is designed to support communities, civil society organisations, and advocates to actively shape Grant Cycle 8 processes—from the earliest stages of national planning through to final grant approval.

It provides practical guidance to:

• Engage meaningfully in the updating of National Strategic Plans (NSPs)
• Strengthen advocacy for realistic and transparent domestic financing commitments
• Influence Global Fund grant-making processes beyond submission, through to approval
• Navigate funding prioritisation for HIV, TB, and malaria responses in a constrained fiscal environment

A pivotal opportunity for innovation and equity

GC8 is not only a moment of financial tightening—it is also a critical window to accelerate transformative prevention approaches. This includes advancing the integration of long-acting injectable Lenacapavir, alongside existing PrEP and PEP options, to expand choice and strengthen prevention coverage.

Why this matters now

Too often, civil society engagement ends at proposal submission. This toolkit highlights a fuller pathway—one that continues through negotiation, review, and final grant approval—where community voices are essential in shaping outcomes.

The message is clear:

Even in shrinking fiscal space, community power must not shrink. This toolkit is a practical companion for turning evidence, lived experience, and advocacy into sustained influence across the entire GC8 cycle.

The time to engage is now—before priorities are locked in, not after.