Scramble on for HIV funds as civil society demands lion’s share

The scramble for US President Barack Obama’s Sh50 billion for its activities in Kenya is on as civil societies demand a bigger share of the money.

Of the cash the Obama administration has requested Congress, about Sh34 billion has been allocated to HIV.

Civil society groups have written to Deborah Birx, the US Global AIDS Coordinator, demanding action in the manner in which US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR) has been handling them.

“We have requested for corrective action, unfortunately there have been no concrete improvements,” the groups say in the letter signed by civil groups from Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Namibia.

In response, Dr Birx says she has since directed her officers to share as much non-procurement and sensitive data as possible with the groups. Signing on behalf of Kenya civil groups is the local branch of the Aids Healthcare Foundation of the US, a strong supporter of gays.

Unilateral decisions

The groups claim the Americans have been for years, making all important decisions unilaterally and pushing them down the throats of civil society groups and governments for implementation.

For instance, they say in Kenya, PEPFAR has indicated that in its 2015 operational plan, it will be working mainly in several high HIV prevalence counties, yet these regions have not yet been named.

This is despite the fact PEPFAR was to finalise its Kenya Country Operational Plan 2015, early this month and give full details on how the money will be allocated, but the bulk is shown to go towards treatment and very little in preventive programmes.

The Ministry of Health has also written to PEPFAR expressing dissatisfaction with the direction the US is taking in planning its HIV response for Kenya.

“I am aware PEPFAR is currently reprogramming in terms of their support to our HIV programme. Please reconsider the approach in line with our government position as communicated to you,” Health Cabinet Secretary James Macharia told a HIV meeting recently.

Documents from Deborah Birx, indicate PEPFAR has requested for $371,680,000 (Sh3.4 billion) for its HIV activities in Kenya.

Major policy shift

The bulk of the money is likely to go to nine counties with highest HIV prevalence indicating a major shift in US policy.

“One of our major shifts is the geographical prioritisation of prevention activities to focus only on counties with the highest HIV incidence,” reads one of the PEPFAR documents.

According to the Ministry of Health; Nairobi, Homa Bay, Kisumu, Siaya, Migori, Mombasa, Turkana, Busia and Kisii counties carry the highest HIV burden.

But even with the geographical shift, the biggest beneficiaries of the Obama funding, PEPFAR indicates will be prostitutes, gays, homosexuals and drug injectors.

Since last year, the organisation intended to scale up HIV prevention activities among prostitutes by 80 per cent, through distribution of condoms, ARVs, injecting needles and use of methadone for drug addicts.