Alhaji Dr. Ahmad Tejan Kabbah on the allocation of the First Tranche of Funds to Focal Points in line Ministries and other Agencies
By Yusuf Alghali

President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah has indicated that out of every thousand Sierra Leoneans, only about nine (or 1% of the population) are HIV positive. He observed that the statistics, attributed to studies carried out by the American Center for Disease Control (CDC), compared favorably with many other African countries, where the ratios were several times higher.

But he cautioned that Sierra Leone should not rest on her oars as a result of the relatively minimal rate of HIV infection. "We still have a good chance of saving our country from an HIV/AIDS induced catastrophe", the President argued, stressing that the chance "must be seized promptly and systematically if it is not to be lost forever."

President Kabbah, who was speaking on the occasion of the allocation of the first tranche of funds to ministries and departments operating under the multi-sectoral component of Sierra Leone HIV/AIDS Response Project at the Lodge Tuesday, assured his audience that government would utilize every single opportunity available to limit and eventually reverse the infection rate among our population. He further expressed his government's determination to minimize the pain of those already infected and create opportunities for advancement in life for those orphaned by the disease.

"I believe that the accomplishment of all these goals is within our reach. This is because, as I have noted, the incidence of HIV/AIDS positive cases in our society is still very low, " he said, adding that "the World Bank, the Government of the United States and other international organizations and had provided substantial financial and other assistance to us in good time".

He said this had enabled government to set up the Sierra Leone HIV/AIDS Response Project (SHARP), which is exclusively dedicated to ensuring that the stated goals in our planned response to the HIV/AIDS problem are fully met through the implementation of strategies that include the creation of multi-sectoral partnerships.

"We are therefore gathered here today to give effect to the strategy of multi-sectoral partnerships, as a means of creating an effective response to the HIV/AIDS threats," referring to the first quarter allocation of approximately Le300 million of SHARP funds, to focal points dealing with AIDS-related issues in the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies.

The President was hopeful that this component of the SHARP project would improve the capacity of non-health sector line ministries and other public entities to integrate agreed HIV-related Work Plans into their regular ministerial or departmental activities, stressing that in this way, "we will accomplish the mainstreaming of our national response to HIV/AIDS into governance, and strengthen our long-term commitment to HIV/AIDS prevention, control, care and treatment".

By this gesture, the Sierra Leone HIV/AIDS Response Project (SHARP) has no doubt significantly intensified its campaign against the national HIV/AIDS pandemic. Government had agreed to progressively expand anti-HIV/AIDS activities, to cover a broad range of Ministries, Districts, and local entities, as well as to fund activities undertaken by communities, community-based organizations, non-governmental organizations, trade and worker associations and the private sector, according to SHARP Director Professor Sidi Alghali, who, acting on behalf of President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah - Chairman of the National HIV/AIDS Council - formally presented the necessary financial instruments to allow line ministries access allocated funds.

In addition, the Director said government was participating in discussions with neighbouring countries and other agencies as to how to address sub-regional refugees and HIV/AIDS; as to those refugees from Liberia or Guinea, or displaced persons within the territory of Sierra Leone, it intends to include refugees, returnees, internally displaced persons, and host communities as beneficiaries in community and civil society initiatives.

It is believed that a rapid spread of the HIV/AIDS epidemic would have damaging consequences for sectors such as education, social welfare, gender and children's affairs, transportation, defense, agriculture and rural development, and the mining sector, all of which are key for the future development of Sierra Leone. Each of these sectors could, in turn, provide significant contributions to the overall fight against HIV/AIDS.

Integrating HIV/AIDS into reproductive health programs, especially those geared toward the youth; intensifying information dissemination necessary to change behavior; fully integrating gender into HIV/AIDS strategies and plans; developing well coordinated programs to protect orphans and other vulnerable children; integrating HIV/AIDS into the education system both as a curriculum issue and a sector planning concern; bringing the private sector into the fight against HIV/AIDS; and assuring that the police and military as well as refugees, returnees, internally displaced persons, and ex-combatants are included in the HIV/AIDS containment effort.

SHARP will begin with core activities for implementation. Support to capacity building will help galvanize the fight against HIV/AIDS and STIs, as well as organize prevention and care activities in sectors and communities not yet engaged. Activities within the various sectors will be geared to reaching staff involved in these sectors and their dependents. Civil servants in sectors such as youth, education, and sports, social welfare, gender and children's affairs, defense, transport, development and economic planning, agriculture, will be trained in HIV/AIDS prevention and care activities. At a future point these trained personnel will become HIV/AIDS and STIs prevention agents for the people they interact with, referring their constituencies to expanded HIV/AIDS and STIs care services that will be available from the health sector, whether public, private, or provided by health-related NGOs. This will occur in a phased manner as personnel become knowledgeable about HIV/AIDS, as areas heretofore inaccessible, become more functional and operational, and as resources become available to these ministries to perform services.

A total of Le 1.8 billion has been made available for the multi-sectoral programme for this year alone, 10% of which was contributed by the government of Sierra Leone. Following is a list of ministries or sectors operating under the multi-sectoral component of SHARP, including amounts already paid into their accounts as first quarter resource requirements.

The Sierra Leone Armed Forces / Ministry of Defence: Le.61,325,000; Sierra Leone Police, Ministry of Internal Affairs: Le.42,850,000; Education, Science and Technology: Le.36,545,000; Youth and Sports: Le. 35,700,000; Social Welfare, Gender & Children's Affairs: Le. 30,425,000; Local Government and Community Development: Le. 26,130,000; Trade and Industry: Le. 16,300,000; Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security: Le. 35,280,000; Information and Broadcasting: Le. 26,610,000; Establishment Secretary's Office; Le. 28,800,000.

All Line Ministries, whose work plan has been approved, shall each receive from the National Aids Secretarial the following: 1 Computer (including its accessories, Printer); 1 Desktop Photocopier, 1 Fax machine, 1 Scanner, 1 Transparency Projector, one 21" TV and Video Cassette Recorder, Megaphones and a Steel Cabinet.

Statements were also heard from the Health and Sanitation Minister Agnes Taylor Lewis and the UNICEF resident representative, Mr. Abubakr Tall, the latter who emphasized that with sufficient commitment, will power and resources, the epidemic could be reversed.

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