Epress.am News from Armenia
The National Coordination Committee in the Fight Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria in the Republic of Armenia is contemplating the issue of administering the grant they are to receive for the next 3 years. Yesterday, February 18, during the committee’s hearing deputy Minister of Health Vahan Poghosyan stated that the work group has to plan the expenses as efficiently as possible, because the Global Fund, a grant giving organization fighting against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria around the world, had decreased the sum of money, establishing $5 million for the next 3 years.
The deputy Minister proposed that presently among the two structures administering the sum, the Ministry of Health and Mission East Humanitarian Aid Organization, the Ministry of Health should be left as the sole administrator. The proposal was met with disappointment by the NGO representative members of the committee.
The Mission East organization, which works with NGOs who work with people with HIV/AIDS and drug issues, has the right to keep individuals identities confidential. The Nor Serund NGO president Sergey Gabrielyan stated that those confidential files can not be entrusted to the Ministry of Health, which, according to him, is part of a Government that encourages intolerence and implements a homophobic policy.
Vahan Poghosyan said that these issues have no connection to each other.
Public Information and Need of Knowledge NGO director Mamikon Hovsepyan stated that this year the Global Fund had stressed that all countries should work toward being free of prejudice, hence this fact should be taken into account.
The Global Fund portfolio-manager Valeria Grishechkina, who was present during the session, stated that if there was a wish to change the recipients of the grant then that would have to be justified. According to her, there is no such justification, because there is no valid dissatisfaction expressed regarding the activities of “Mission East.”
Two other proposals were made at the National Coordination Committee session: that grant recipient organizations remain the same, or the Mission East organization be replaced with the Youth Foundation of Armenia. This proposal was made by Deputy Minister of Education and Sciences Manuk Mkrtchyan. His representative even claimed that if the Youth Foundation of Armenia were to become a recipient of the grant, it would be appropriate if it were represented in the working group as well.
The vote will take place during the Committee's next session, in March.
Note, that the coordinator of the Board of Trustees of the Youth Foundation of Armenia is Republican Party MP Karen Avagyan. The Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan and various Ministers and government members are among the Board of Trustees. The Foundation is considered a partner organization by the President’s Office and is almost entirely funded by grants by the latter office.