Botswana survives United States aid budget cut

MONKAGEDI GAOTLHOBOGWE
Staff Writer | Friday July 23, 2010 00:00

A number of African countries are calling on the Barack Obama administration to consider its stance after complaining that the budget cut would results in death of HIV positive Africans.

South Africans recently demonstrated at the USA embassy in Johannesburg condemning the USA's decision to reduce its budget support for Africa in the fight against HIV/ AIDS.

Recent articles in The Boston Globe and The New York Times have reported evidence of a retrenchment in PEPFAR - the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief - treatment funding for new patients in Uganda.

In South Africa, an estimated 3,000 deaths occurred due to a recent antiretroviral scale-up moratorium.

Fingers are pointing at Obama as it is believed that he has decided to cut the African budget for HIV/AIDS treatment in order to channel funds towards his new global health initiative.

The global economic recession and the de-emphasis of HIV/AIDS treatment by the Obama administration in favour of other global health initiatives threatens to undermine the impressive results achieved thus far in treating HIV/AIDS in the resource limited setting.

Meanwhile, the eighteenth International AIDS Conference is convening in Vienna, Austria, where the diminishing commitment by the Group of Eight (G8) countries, including the United States, towards HIV/AIDS treatment funding is a major topic.

Catholic activists and other participating stakeholders at the Vienna AIDS conference this week warned that large reductions in funding for AIDS work around the world are putting at risk the lives of people who depend on faith-based organisations for care, treatment and support.

Results from a rapid assessment of 19 faith-based organisations working on AIDS in poor countries was conducted in June by the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance, which announced the results at a July 21 news conference, according to international sources.The study found that all but two of the agencies surveyed were already experiencing at least a flat-lining of funding. Some were forced to make cutbacks in the past six months while others were warned that cuts in funding levels are about to be announced.

Becky Johnson, the researcher who compiled the report, says funding cuts to faith based groups could devastate poor areas of the world such as sub-Saharan Africa, where such organisations provide up to 70 percent of health care and HIV-related services.

Despite the outcry amongst Africans, NACA says there has not been any significant decrease in PEPFAR funding to Botswana.  NACA added that in 2005 Botswana received US$ 52 million with US$14.5 million going to government, in 2006 Botswana received US$ 55 million, with US$22.2 million going to government, in 2007 Botswana received US$75 million with US$19.6 million going to government, in 2008 received US$93 million, with US$17.9 million going to government and in 2009 Botswana received US$92 million with US$18.7 million going to government. 

'We can therefore say that overall contributions from PEPFAR have been increasing over time with insignificant fluctuations in terms of funds going directly to government.  We are however aware that PEPFAR will gradually be reducing funding, not only in Botswana, but to all that it has been supporting,' according to NACA.

'As indicated above, the decrease, if any, has been too insignificant to have any impact.  Please also note that most of the funds for the National Response, and specifically for ARVs are from government coffers and therefore any reduction will not have any impact.  Please also note that once a patient starts on ARV they can never stop taking them.  Therefore, government of Botswana will have to find alternative means of source the gap left by the reduction or even total withdrawal of donor funding,' reports NACA.

Asked about the hardest hit local programs that traditionally depended on PEPFAR funding, a NACA spokesperson responded: 'In a situation where donor funding is declining programs are bound to be affected in one way or the other.  However, to date the national response to HIV and AIDS has not experienced any negative impact as a result of a reduction in PEPFAR funding'.