Global Fund increases allocation to Nigeria by 30% – Official

Maureen Onyia-Ekwuazi, the First Vice Chair, Country Coordinating Mechanism
Global Fund Nigeria, says the fund has increased allocation coming to Nigeria to tackle Malaria, HIV and Malaria by 30 per cent in the next three years (2021-2021)
Onyia-Ekwuazi told News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja that Global Fund increased the allocation due to safeguard policy introduced by CCM to ensure transparency in the implementation of the grant.
She said the policy would ensure accountability and transparency in the implementation of programmes and projects toward reducing the burden of the three diseases in the country.
According to her, Nigeria is applying for $890 million grant from Global Fund to reduce the burden of HIV, Tuberculosis and Malaria from 2021 to 2023.
She added that Nigeria was implementing programmes worth $620 million grant from 2018 to 2020 for Malaria, TB and HIV and it would end in December.
Onyia-Ekwuazi said: “We are in the process of renewing the grant, which will run from 2021 to 2023; we are trying to see if we can apply at the end of March.
“Global Fund takes a lot of process.
“If we apply in March and we are favoured, we will not have funding gap.
“There are three windows to apply for the grant: first widow is in March, second is middle of the year and the last is end of the year.
“If we delay in processing it, we will have funding gap and we are trying our best not to experience that.”
According to her, not all current allocation ($620 million) for 2018 to 2020 has been released and whatever is left will be transferred to make up for the current grant.
Onyia-Ekwuazi, who is a representative of the Nigeria Labour Congress at CCM Nigeria, said CCM had been working with Global Fund to ensure smooth implementation
of the grant in the country.
CCM Nigeria, the custodian of Global Fund grant, is a body of representatives of government, bilateral and multilateral organisations, Civil Society Organisations, patients, communities, private sector and academia.
The mandate of CCM is to oversee the delivery of Global Fund for HIV, Tuberculosis, Malaria and Resilient Sustainable Systems for Health grant.
Malaria has the highest allocation of $417.8 million, followed by HIV with $329.1 million and Tuberculosis $143.5 million, while RSSH will take 10 per cent from each allocation from the $890 million.
On donor fatigue, the official said the volume of grant coming from donor partners had declined because Nigeria had moved from low income country to middle income country.
Onyia-Ekwuazi said: “Donors are gradually reducing money to Nigeria so that government can get used to budgeting for the programmes.
“There is need for government to budget enough money for health.
“There was a pledge to allocate 15 per cent of total budget to health in the Abuja Declaration, but that has not been achieved yet.”
NAN.