MOH Signs J$73.4 Million MOU
with Sub-recipients
of the Global Fund Grant

A total of J$73.4 Million grant was signed over by the Ministry of Health to eight subrecipients of the Global Fund Grant on June 30, 2004 at the Ministry's King Street Head Office.

The eight sub-recipients and the allocated amounts are; University of the West Indies HIV/AIDS Response Programme (UWI/HARP) - J$6.8M; The Centre for HIV/AIDS Research, Education and Services (CHARES) - J$3.6M; Hope Worldwide - J$5.6M; Jamaica AIDS Support for Life (JASL)- J$14.7M; The Ministry of Education, Youth and Culture - J$10.08M; The National AIDS Committee - J$20.9M; Children First - J$1.4M; and Youth.Now - J$10.4M.

Speaking at the event Dr. Peter Figueroa, Chief Epidemiologist in the National HIV/STI Control programme, said there is a lot more work to be carried out, hnce the need for a multi-sectoral approach in the fight against the epidemic.

He said despite the tasks ahead there are some meaningful accomplishments that continue to propel the National Programme's efforts. He singled out the significant achievements made in the Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission Programme, explaining that the Programme has been able to reach over ninety percent (90%) of pregnant women. With the desire to achieve a hundred percent (100%) coverage, Dr. Figueroa said the preservation of the collective approach is key.

Dr. Peter Figueroa also added that one of the priorities of the programme this year is to scale up the access to antiretroviral drugs, with the outlined plan to get at least a thousand (1000) Persons Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs) on treatment. He however hastened to add that although this is the documented objective it is the National HIV/STI Control Programme's intention to make treatment available to HIV infected persons who need it and at the same time heightening the prevention strategies.

In making his contributions Dr. Yitades Gebre, Executive Director of the National Programme, reiterated that a multi-sectoral and multi-dimensional response is crucial in mobilizing society in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Recounting what has already taken place including the signing of the Global Fund Grant Agreement in Geneva, Dr. Gebre explained that the signing between the Project Coordination Unit of the National Programme and the recipients would facilitate the immediate commencement of planned activities. The disbursement of resources he said would be done a quarterly basis to the eight sub-recipients in the first year.

Each sub-recipient was selected based on their proven track record in HIV/AIDS prevention and care in Jamaica. With the one-year Memorandum of Understanding now signed, each sub recipient will be expected to establish a credible accounting system and provide annual accounting reports. The remaining five sub-recipients will be incorporated as the five year period unfolds. The five are The Jamaica Red Cross, Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ); Jamaica Employers Federation/Private sector Organization of Jamaica; Jamaica Foundation for Children and the Jamaica Council of Churches.