The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria wants a new entity to manage the $28.77 million HIV and AIDS grant it has approved for Mali.
The decision to transfer grant management from Haut Conseil de Lutte contre le Sida to a new principal recipient at the end of the year is based on the preliminary results of an ongoing investigation by the organization’s office of the inspector general.
The scope of the grant has also been reduced, allowing funding for essential services to 25,288 Malians who currently receive anti-retroviral therapy with Global Fund aid and possible new patients through the end of the year. This will be disbursed “gradually under strict conditions” and each expense will be subject to scrutiny by a local fund agent and a fiduciary agent, according to a Global Fund press release.
The Global Fund said it had requested Mali’s country coordinating mechanism, which represents the health financing organization’s partners in the African country, to name a new principal recipient that will manage the grant as it begins its second phase. This phase normally lasts three years.
According to the organization, the action is part of efforts to restore confidence in grant management in Mali following the discovery of several fund mishandling incidents. In June this year, a former health minister was indicted for his involvement in the irregularities.
The Global Fund said it is working with the Malian government to ensure grant activities restart as soon as possible. It has asked for the reimbursement of the misused funds and sought commitment from the government that it will vigorously pursue legal efforts to hold those responsible for fraud and losses to account.
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