Organizations working on HIV/AIDS cautions govt. not to lose global fund

Expressing dissatisfaction over the INGOs' functioning against HIV/AIDS, various organisations working for the welfare of people with HIV/AIDS have cautioned the government to be careful while forwarding its bidding proposal for the seventh round of the fund from the Global Fund.

They said Nepal might lose the fund if the government would not be serious in this regard. They suggested the government to be tactful.

speaking at a press conference organized in the capital, Rishi Raj Ojha, president of the Youth Power Nepal said that in the sixth phase project, the Country Coordination Mechanism (CCM) passed a proposal and sent it to the Global Fund, naming the Ministry of Health and Population and the Family Health International (FHI) as principal recipients but the FHI, without taking permission from the government, sent another proposal naming it as the principal recipient.

He also said that for seventh phase project, the Global Fund has opened proposal from March 1 and some INGOs have already started sending proposals to it

Ojha also accused the INGOs of not doing enough for getting the money from the Global Fund (GF), Geneva. The GF, established in 2002, has been providing funds to various nations for the treatment of HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis.

According to him, Nepal had received the fund for the second phase project in 2002. The country was categorized as unsuccessful nation 'for receiving money from the GF after the forth phase'.

Rajiv Kafle, president of the Federation of People Living with HIV/AIDS said if there would be multiple recipients, 30 to 40 per cent of the fund would be utilized by the principal recipients.