By Delisa Thwala
For the year 2023-2026, the Global fund has approved a grant of $42 million (E 777,751,800.00) to His Majesty King Mswati III’s Government to continue the fight against the HIV/Aids pandemic.
The news was announced by His Excellency the Honourable Prime Minister Russell Mmiso Dlamini during the official launch of the Eswatini Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) on Thursday.
The PM said the serious challenge posed by non-communicable diseases requires more resources to be urgently channelled towards the deliberate mitigation and fight against NCDs.
Dlamini said he hoped that a consideration would be made for CCM to take on prevalent NCDS.
“Through the Eswatini CCM, grants from the Global Fund for HIV, TB, and malaria have made a significant impact. To date, Global Fund has committed E350,659,996 and disbursed US$341,188,684.
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This support is received by the Kingdom of Eswatini through Eswatini CCM and implemented through NERCHA and CANGO as CCM Principal Recipients,” he said.
In addition, he said NERCHA has received E322,264,365 whilst CANGO received E18,924,319. Global Fund has supported the implementation of National Strategic Plans for the three diseases.
This includes the procurement of health products, building resilient sustainable systems for health (RSSH), Refurbishment of the Central medical stores, Delivery Vehicles for the Central Medical Stores, Reporting Systems:
CMIS, ELMIS, Navision for CMS, MSDS for Malaria, Laboratory Information System (computer equipment and Software to mention a few.
“The Global Fund partnership aligns with our national vision, which presents a unique opportunity to change the trajectory of HIV, TB, and malaria in our country,” said the PM.
It is worth noting that the Eswatini CCM being launched is a multisectoral and multi-stakeholder structure that provides overall leadership and oversight of Global Fund (GF) supported programmes in Eswatini.
It is a governance mechanism constituted by all relevant stakeholders in the HIV, TB, Malaria, and COVID-19 responses including those that engage in building and strengthening national and community systems for health.
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The CCM comprises 19 substantive members, and 19 alternates, bringing CCM ALL membership to 38.
The members to be unveiled are people living with the 3 diseases, key affected populations, faith-based organizations, academia, private sector organizations, and Bilateral and Multilateral Development Partners in Eswatini.
The PM commended the Ministry of Health for their leadership and the members of the Country Coordinating Mechanism for their dedication.
He said their commitment to serve and work hard is crucial to making sure that Global Fund grants are implemented effectively to bring life-changing impacts to our communities.
The PM then declared the Eswatini CCM 2023 –2026 officially launched.
