The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund) has released a procurement and supply management guide for the recipients of its funds. The "Guide to Global Fund's Policies on Procurement and Supply Management" intends to clarify the policies to recipients of funds, and their advisers.
In order to provide medicines and other health products to as many people as possible, the Global Fund has adopted a set of policies and principles on procurement and supply management (PSM) that aim to support the procurement of quality assured medicines and other health products in sufficient quantities, reduce cost inefficiencies, ensure the reliability and security of the distribution system, encourage appropriate use of health products, and continuously monitor and evaluate the procurement process. The purpose of the guide is to explain those policies for the benefit of Global Fund recipients.
The guide is not intended to replace existing guidelines but to be used together with several existing ones, such as Interagency Guidelines: Operational Principles for Good Pharmaceutical Procurement WHO, Geneva, 1999, "Managing Drug Supply, 2nd edition", Management Sciences for Health, with support from WHO, "HIV/AIDS medicines and related supplies: Contemporary Context and Procurement" published by World Bank, "Surmounting Challenges: Procurement of Antiretroviral Medicines in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: the experience of MSF", MSF, UNAIDS and WHO and "A public Health Approach for Scaling Up ARV Treatment : toolkit for programme managers", prepublication draft, WHO, August 2003.
India had recently signed two new grant agreements with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, paving the way for the disbursal of US$ 33 million over the next two years, and totaling US$ 129 million over five years. These grants are expected to help scale up the national HIV/AIDS prevention and control program and expand the national TB control program.
The Global Fund was established to attract, manage and disburse additional resources through a new public-private partnership that will make a sustainable and significant contribution to the reduction of infections, illness and death, thereby mitigating the impact caused by HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in countries in need, and contributing to poverty reduction as part of the Millennium Development Goals. As a partnership between governments, civil society, the private sector and affected communities, the Global Fund represents an innovative approach to international health financing.