DUSHANBE, August 29, 2012, Asia-Plus – The Board of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund) approved 45 new two-year grants totaling US$419.2 million from 37 countries, including Tajikistan, to fund essential prevention, treatment, and care services provided to the people affected by the three diseases, press release issued by the Global Fund on August 28 said.
Another 11 proposals worth a total of US$ 91.2 million were sent back for revision, and are subject to a further independent technical review before they can be approved.
Tajikistan has reportedly submitted projects to combat all the three diseases.
The proposals approved on August 24, 2012 were part of the Transitional Funding Mechanism. The mechanism was established by the Global Fund Board in November 2011 on an exceptional basis to ensure that essential programs are not disrupted, at a time when there was uncertainty on the availability of resources. The approved funding will bridge the financing of essential interventions until the next opportunity to apply for grants.
A total of 48 applicants presented 61 proposals. They were analyzed by an independent Technical Review Panel. Unlike regular grant proposals, which can last five years, the requests were limited to a two-year period. Five proposals were not approved because they did not meet the Transitional Funding Mechanism requirements, namely the need to include the continuation of essential services and that disruption of these services occurs between January 1, 2012 and March 31, 2014.
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (The Global Fund or GFATM) is an international financing organization that aims to “attract and disburse additional resources to prevent and treat HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.” A public–private partnership, the organization has its secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland. The organization began operations in January 2002.
The Global Fund is the world”s largest financier of anti-AIDS, TB and malaria programs and at the end of 2010 has approved funding of US$21.7 billion that supports more than 600 programs in 150 countries.
According to the organization, it has financed the distribution of 160 million insecticide-treated nets to combat malaria, provided anti-tuberculosis treatment for 7.7 million people, and provided AIDS treatment for some three million people, saving 6.5 million lives.
The Global Fund is a financing mechanism rather than an implementing agency. This means that monitoring of programs is supported by a Secretariat of approximately 600 staff (as of 2011) in Geneva. Implementation is done by Country Coordinating Mechanisms, which are committees consisting of local stakeholder organizations in-country that include some or all of government, NGO, UN, faith-based and private sector actors.
