§ Mr. KeyTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment her Department has made of Malawi's proposal to the Global Health Fund, with particular reference to the issue of an upper limit on proposals; and if she will make a statement. [103106]
§ Clare ShortUS$196 million was awarded to the Malawi Global Fund Coordinating Committee in August 2002 for HIV/AIDS. This is currently the largest GFATM award in Africa. A further USD 40 million was approved in February 2003 for scaling up prevention and treatment of Malaria.
A review of Global Fund proposals in five countries, including Malawi, was undertaken in August 2002. It highlights the challenge in Malawi to absorb the additional finance given the prevailing health service infrastructure. There are major shortages of 512W appropriately trained staff. The public sector is experiencing high attrition both from dissatisfaction with terms and conditions of service and as a direct result of AIDS. The GFATM proposal also requires extensive laboratory facilities which are currently lacking and qualified technicians and are in short supply.
Accordingly the Global Fund is phased so that initial stages concentrate on building capacity for service delivery. The Global Fund proposal is complemented by several other initiatives in the health sector, including work supported by my Department in strengthening essential medical laboratory services, medical supplies management, and improved mechanisms for coordinating donor support. The DFID mainstreaming strategy will help strengthen the institutional framework for a multi-sectoral HIV response by supporting posts in government and key institutions including WHO, UNAIDS and the World bank.