Africa needs Sh948b for HIV/Aids

By Mangoa Mosota

A new report by the UN says African countries will next year need Sh948 billion ($12 billion) to fight HIV and Aids.

The UNAids said the amount is 49 per cent of the Sh2 trillion ($25 billion), required by low- and middle-income countries.

The report, posted on the agency website titled: What countries need: Investments needed for 2010 targets, said the Sh2 trillion is $11.3 billion (Sh893 billion) more than is available today.

"It will not be easy to close this gap, but it is achievable and absolutely necessary if we are to accelerate the pace of the response to the HIV/Aids epidemic," said UNAids Executive Director Michel SidibÈ.

However, the report does not state what each of the African countries requires.

In Kenya, an estimated 98 per cent of country’s HIV/Aids programmes are donor funded.

The Global Fund is one of the largest supporters of Kenya’s Aids programmes, providing an estimated Sh7.9 billion every year; the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief, provides about $200 million (Sh16 billion) annually.

The investment needs is based on the country-defined targets to reach universal access to HIV prevention, treatment care and support by end of next year.

The report, released earlier this week, anticipates that nearly one-third of this investment will come from domestic sources.

Health systems

Investments from multilateral and bilateral sources needed for the remaining $17 billion (Sh1.4 trillion).

The report highlights that, of the total investments required, approximately one-third is for activities addressing behavioural change, social drivers of the epidemic, social mitigation and other services that are managed outside of the health sector through multi-sectoral programmes.

"Another one-third is aimed at strengthening health systems. The weakness of health systems is a major obstacle," states the report.

The remaining one-third will go towards HIV-specific health services, such as programmes to reduce mother-to-child HIV transmission, blood safety, and provision of antiretroviral therapy for those in need.