By DPA
Heiligendamm (Germany) : The Group of Eight (G8) industrialized nations, at a summit meeting here, has agreed to fund a new global programme to combat infectious diseases like AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.
G8 governments are to contribute some $60 billion to the fund most of which is to be spent in the worst-hit Africa.
Germany is to increase its contribution to the fund by 4 billion euros ($5.4 billion) by 2015, Development Aid Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul said Friday.
Future German contributions will be equivalent to 500 million euros a year, up from 400 million euros this year and 300 million euros in 2006.
The US is to contribute half the proposed corpus, not through the fund but under its own programme.
At the end of May, Bush put forward a measure to the US Congress calling for $30 billion over five years for funding the fight against AIDS, doubling the amount currently being spent.