Global Fund, India Sign Two Grant Agreements To Help Fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis
India and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria on Tuesday signed two grant agreements that will allow the disbursement of $33 million over the next two years and a total of $129 million over five years, the Times of India reports. The grants, which were approved on Jan. 30, 2003, during the Global Fund's second round of grant proposals, will be used to expand the country's national HIV/AIDS and TB prevention and control programs. In its third round of grants, the fund approved another $15 million for Indian HIV/AIDS and TB prevention and treatment programs. To date, the Global Fund has committed to India $153 million over five years (Times of India, 2/10). Most of the money from the Global Fund will go toward the provision and administration of antiretroviral drugs to HIV-positive people, AP/Yahoo! News reports. Approximately 4.6 million Indians, or less than 1% of the country's adult population, are HIV-positive, according to the government, which does not track HIV/AIDS cases among children (AP/Yahoo! News, 2/10). "The global battle against HIV/AIDS hinges on India keeping its burden low," Global Fund Executive Director Richard Feachem said, adding, "This grant is intended to support India in its crucial phase of tackling the epidemic." Meenakshi Datta Ghosh, head of the country's National AIDS Control Organization, said, "The additional resources accruing from the Global Fund will enable implementation of a comprehensive package for people living with HIV/AIDS, for prevention, care and treatment, including the provisioning of antiretroviral therapy through public-private partnerships" (Global Fund release, 2/10).
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