13 August 2007
Geneva - The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria today announced that it has lifted the suspensions of its two grants funding HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis programs in Chad.
The grants, worth more than US$ 20 million over five years, were suspended in November 2006 due to concerns over the misuse of funds and the ability of the Principal Recipient (PR) and Sub-recipients (SR) to manage the Global Fund's resources.
The decision to lift the suspensions was made after efforts and a strong commitment from the government, development partners, the Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) and the programs' Principal Recipient - Le Fonds de Soutien aux Activités en Matière de Population (FOSAP) - which guaranteed that better systems were in place with new clarified responsibilities. It is hoped that this will lead to better oversight and more effective implementation of the two grants. The funds that had been misused before the suspensions are currently in the process of being recovered.
"The Global Fund welcomes the extensive efforts of our partners in Chad to ensure that our concerns have been addressed," said Dr Michel Kazatchkine, Executive Director of the Global Fund. "We are very pleased that the progress made enables us to support the country again in its fight against the two diseases. Many people in Chad are depending on it."
Since its creation in 2002, the Global Fund has grown to become the dominant financer of programs to fight AIDS, TB and malaria, with almost US$ 11 billion in firm pledges and approved funding of US$ 7.7 billion for more than 450 programs in 136 countries. So far, programs supported by the Global Fund have provided AIDS and TB treatment to 1.1 million people and 2.8 million people, respectively, and distributed 30 million insecticide-treated bed nets for the prevention of malaria. To date, these programs have averted 1.8 million deaths worldwide.