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Global Fund Will No Longer Give Kenya The Sh40B Cash Grant Due To Rampant Corruption

Published

4 years ago

August 22, 2020

Police arresting activists who were protesting against the theft of covid 19 funds.

Innocent Kenyans are once again paying for the price of corruption orchestrated by the high mighty health cartels. Days after sending a warning for quick answers, Global Fund, one of Kenya’s biggest donors are now saying they’re withholding their cash, this is due to fear of losing everyone to corruption.

The Fund, supports HIV/Aids, tuberculosis and malaria programmes now says it would instead buy the medical supplies needed by the country but not giving cash.

Only three African countries – Kenya, South Africa and Ethiopia – have been getting the grants in cash but the agency has lost trust in Kenya.

This decision is meant to stem corruption in the procurement chain where corruption thrives and afford more beneficiaries drugs and other supplies a measure that will go to punish the leeches in the chain but cushion the vulnerable poor Kenyans.

Global Fund has been at loggerheads with KEMSA following procurement mishaps which they felt the need to clear before proceeding with their grant obligations.

Particularly delays in procurement of GeneXpert cartridges and nutritional commodities, a transport tender at Kemsa and procurement of Kenya Malaria Indicator Survey.

It will be interesting to see how the new measure by the Fund unravels whether it will cut the looting or the cartels will find other creative ways to keep stealing.

Kenya is one of the Global Fund’s “high-impact” countries with active signed grants of $384 million (Sh40.7 billion) for January 2018 to June 2021.

The Global Fund has supported HIV/Aids, TB and malaria programmes in Kenya since 2002, disbursing to the country $1.14 billion (Sh120.8 billion) in total.

The USAid supports the Kemsa medical commodities project, with funding of about $650 million (Sh69 billion) for procurement of commodities funded by the United States government between 2015 and 2020.

About 60 per cent of the grant is spent on procuring medicines and health products.

Kemsa is responsible for procurement, storage and distributing medicines and health products under the grants managed by the National Treasury.

With the support of the government, the Global Fund, USAid and other donors, Kemsa is a leading procurement and supply chain firm in the region.

Latest Kemsa Covid-19 scam has rubbed many donors the wrong way and are now pushing for accountability. USAID is also on record demanding for answers as they ponder on their next move.

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