Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang has vigorously rejected a claim that her department is delaying distribution of donor money to fight Aids.
Richard Feacham, director of the Global Fund to Fight Aids, TB and Malaria, made the claim this week, saying his organisation might look at other distribution mechanisms than the central government.
However Tshabalala-Msimang has expressed ”surprise and disbelief” at Feacham’s statement, and according to her department has written to him to this effect.
”Dr Feacham has no right to threaten to reorganise arrangements between the fund and South Africa without establishing what the facts are,” the minister said in a statement issued by the department on Tuesday.
The statement said every dollar received by the Treasury and the department on behalf of South African recipients of fund grants had been passed on to the organisations for which they were meant.
Steps had been taken to secure the second round of disbursements from the fund. The only delay in this process was South Africa’s adherence to the key principles of the fund — good financial management and performance monitoring. The first tranche of just over $17-million, destined for LoveLife, Soul City and the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government, was transferred from the fund to the Treasury on December 19, 2003.
By the end of January this money had been transferred to the national Department of Health (the channel for the LoveLife and Soul City grants) and the KwaZulu-Natal treasury.
During February, Soul City, LoveLife and various organisations in KwaZulu-Natal all received their money.
The department said that in April, the first steps were taken to secure the second disbursement for the same recipients.
”It appears that the processes relating to the LoveLife project have given rise to Dr Feacham’s allegations of delays and cumbersome procedures,” the statement said.
”However, it is our contention that delays have been minimal and are fully justified in terms of responsible administration.”
The South African National Aids Council, which co-ordinated applications for fund money, had conducted site visits at LoveLife and had also asked for further financial information from the organisation.
”The process needed to clarify the LoveLife report is almost complete and the application for the second disbursement is likely to be submitted by the end of May,” the department said. – Sapa