The Foundation Council is the highest policy- and decision-making body of the Global Forum. It is composed of up to 25 representatives of government policy-makers, multilateral and bilateral development agencies, foundations, NGOs, women's organizations, research-oriented bodies, private commercial enterprises and the media. Its responsibilities include adopting the workplan and budget, approving the annual report and audited accounts as well as commissioning external evaluations of the Global Forum.

The Foundation Council is assisted by a Strategic and Technical Advisory Committee (STRATEC), composed of six members selected from Council members plus its own chair.

Since November 2007, the Foundation Council is chaired by Gill Samuels who joined the Global Forum’s Foundation Council in 2004. Dr Samuels is a distinguished woman scientist whose background is solidly in research: she is a physiologist and neuropharmacologist by training, who has made an active contribution to the discovery of several new medicines.