Communities and civil society representatives attended the Sixth Replenishment Preparatory Meeting of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund) hosted by the Government of India, the first time that a Replenishment Meeting was hosted by an implementing country. The Preparatory Meeting brought together representatives from donors, implementing countries, communities and civil society, and technical partners. Here, the Global Fund Investment Case which calls for at least US$14 billion was presented.
Communities & CS Speakers Prep Meeting
Communities & CS representatives, including Friends of the Global Fund organisations at the Preparatory Meeting met from 10:00 – 13:00hrs on the 7th February 2019. The Meeting was organised by GFAN Asia- Pacific (GFAN AP) and the India Working Group for Health Advocacy (IWG). This was to understand key points of interventions for Communities and Civil Society during the Preparatory Meeting; prepare for the discussions during the meeting with Peter Sands, Executive Director of the Global Fund; and for communities and CS speakers to share their interventions they would be raising during their interventions for colleagues to provide inputs.
Meeting with Peter Sands
The discussions were moderated by Erika Castellanos, Alternate Board Member of the Communities Delegation to the Board of the Global Fund.During the Meeting, the IWG shared the work they have been engaged so far on community mobilization for the Global Fund Replenishment and on advocacy on domestic resource mobilization.
A discussion was then held on the Investment Case ask and on domestic co-financing and communications strategy of the Global Fund; the need for scaling up and continued investments in communities and civil society and through community systems strengthening; and on related threats of access to generic medications on Intellectual Property Rights discussions of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) FTA.
Responses include:
• Congratulatory remarks on the work of the IWG to combine voices and give a collective message with India being a country that has made tremendous progress and bringing more focus to TB.
• The ask of US$14 billion was the minimum required to achieve the Global Fund Strategy targets agreed by the Board of the Global Fund, and efforts are being made on the increment of 15% by donors to be delivered upon, and a 20% increase for private sector and foundations donors. It would be helpful for private sector donors to be aware of flexibility of earmarking of funds.
• The need to follow up on the developments of RCEP FTA discussions and understanding the related threats/impacts to the work of the Global Fund.
Presenting India Communities & CS Asks!
Members of the working group presented Hon J.P. Nadda, Minister of Health and Family Welfare, India a letter commending the work of the Government of India, and calling for India to demonstrate its commitment towards the Global Fund and in soliarity with the global community by doubling its pledge to the Global Fund to US$40 million from the Fifth Replenishment, be a champion in G20 countries for the Global Fund, and to increase its domestic expenditure in health and to fully fund HIV, TB and Malaria.
IWG Booth at the India Showcase
The IWG organised a booth at the Preparatory Meeting that included display materials on TB, HIV, malaria and presented the work of more than 80 communities and civil society organisations across India.
The display materials included a small model prepared by children living with HIV on health services, interactive stories of people affected by HIV & TB and from a malaria perspective.
The booth provided an opportunity for supporters to select and paste a pseudo currency (US$, €, £) onto a wall.
Communities & CS Speakers at the Sixth Replenishment Preparatory Meeting
- Ms Daxa Patel (India) speaks about her personal story of fighting HIV/AIDS and the related stigma and discrimination she experienced, which drove her to devote her life to breaking down barriers for people living with HIV. The video is available here.
- Ms Resty Nalwanga (Uganda) tells her story of strength and tenacity, fighting and beating both TB and MDR-TB as a teenager and living with HIV.
- Dr Khuat Thi Hai Oanh (Vietnam) speaks on the panel on “Driving progress and innovation towards UHC, SDG3”. The video is available here.
- Ms Erika Castellanos (Belize / Netherlands) and Ms Sibulele Sibaca (South Africa) speak on the panel on “Mobilising communities and young people to end epidemics and achieve the SDGs”. The video of Ms Castellanos is available here and here.
- Mr Timur Abdullaev (Uzbekistan) speaks on the panel on “Sustainable financing for health: More health with existing resources and more resources for health”
- Ms Olivia Ngou Zangue (Cameroon) tells her story about the fight against malaria in Cameroon and the Western and Central Africa Region. Her story will revolve around her extensive experience in managing and implementing community-based malaria programmes in hard-to-reach and vulnerable populations. The video is available here.
- Ms Maurine Murenga (Kenya) represents the Communities and Civil Society Delegations on the Global Fund Board on the Global Fund investment case 2020 – 22. The video is available here.
Key Highlights from the Speakers
Key messages from the various communities & civil society speakers include:
- The need to increase domestic resources for health which is integral to step up the fight against the three diseases, and to ensure that health interventions and services are fully funded holistically for achieving health and well- being for all.
- Increased investments in communities- and civil society-led advocacy is crucial for the fight against the three diseases. Global Fund investments in the protection and promotion of human rights. gender equality and long-term sustainability of the responses has empowered communities to be a driving force of the solutions and facilitated a stronger movement to be equal partners in decision-making.
- Resilient health systems are inclusive of not only health systems, and also community systems which is integral in achieving UHC and the SDGs, and it is important to create shared values among governments, private sector, legal entities and communities & civil society to create and nurture effective partnerships to maximise innovation and to respond to the three diseases.
- It is important to fully fund the Global Fund as it provides the platform for community voices and for them to express their needs.
- The Global Fund provides the visibility and recognition to key populations so that we become