On 12 April 2018, the Global Fund’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) led by Mr Mouhamadou Diagne, the Global Fund’s Inspector General, held consultations with over 30 representatives of Kenyan civil society and communities affected by HIV, TB and malaria. The consultations were hosted by KELIN in partnership with the Developing Country NGO Delegation to the Global Fund Board. The aim of this meeting was to ensure civil society and communities understand the mandate of the OIG and how they can engage with the office.
Mr Mouhamadou Diagne explained that the mandate of the OIG extends beyond financial audits to include investigation, inspection and in-country reviews of all systems, processes, operations, functions and activities of the Global Fund and of the programmes it supports.
Representatives of civil society and communities engaged with the OIG in a question and answer session to better understand the mandate of the office in relation to Global Fund grants, including reporting mechanisms for human rights violations. Some of the concerns raised by the participants included:
(i) Poor involvement of CSOs and CBOs in Global Fund programmes and processes;
(ii) Lack of transparency in procurement and contracting processes;
(iii) Concerns regarding the expiry of medicine in warehouses;
(iv) The attempt to use biometrics to collect key population data without putting in place the necessary safeguards;
(iv) Detention of a TB patient in a Global Fund funded facility for non-payment of hospital bills; and
(v) The need for meaningful engagement of key populations disproportionately affected by HIV, TB or malaria, including trans gender persons, in Global Fund programmes and processes at the country level.
Participants shared concerns that previous feedback to the implementation teams on the issues raised have been ignored, defeating the principles of inclusion, participation, transparency and accountability.
KELIN working in tandem with the Developing Country NGO Delegation will strive to increase the capacities of communities and civil societies to independently provide feedback to the OIG, use the Global Fund’s human rights complaints procedure to report violations, participate in the country audit process and ensure implementation of recommendations of the audit report.
To contribute to the discussion and for live updates follow KELIN on our social media platforms using the hashtag #OIGinNairobi: Twitter: @KELINkenya Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kelinkenya
For more information contact:
Allan Maleche
Kenya Legal and Ethical Issues Network on HIV & AIDS (KELIN)
4th Floor, Somak Building, Mombasa Road
PO Box 112-00200, KNH
Email: amaleche@kelinkenya.org
Mobile No: +254 708389870
