BURMA: GLOBAL FUND PRINCIPAL RECIPIENTS SELECTED

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 000207

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MLS, S/GAC, AND F
NSC FOR LIZ PHU
BANGKOK FOR USAID/RDMA HEALTH OFFICE, REO
DEPARTMENT PLEASE PASS TO USAID/AME AND DEPT OF HHS (WILLIAM
STEIGER)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/06/2019
TAGS: SOCI EAID PHUM KHIV PGOV SENV BM
SUBJECT: BURMA: GLOBAL FUND PRINCIPAL RECIPIENTS SELECTED

REF: RANGOON 66

RANGOON 00000207 001.2 OF 002


Classified By: Economic Officer Samantha A. Carl-Yoder for Reasons 1.4
(b and d).

Summary
--------------


1. (SBU) The Minister of Health chaired the fourth Country
Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) meeting March 31 in preparation
for the GOB's planned Round 9 Global Fund application.
During the meeting, CCM members selected Save the Children
(US) and the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) as the
dual principal recipients (PRs) to oversee the requested
Global Fund budget of USD 253 million over five years. Save
the Children (US) will manage the funds for international
NGOs and UNOPS will work with the UN, the Government of
Burma, and local NGOs. UNOPS will also act as the sole
procurement agent for the Global Fund grant. The Ministry of
Health continues to draft the Round 9 proposal, and the CCM
agreed to circulate drafts to interested parties for comment.
Embassy Rangoon has already received and passed the HIV/AIDS
proposal to the Department and USAID for comment, and will do
the same with the TB and malaria proposals, which are
expected within the next few weeks. End Summary.

And the PRs Are...
--------------


2. (SBU) During the last CCM meeting in January, members
decided that Burma's Round 9 Global Fund (GF) application
would include two principal recipients (PRs),one to work
with international NGOs and a separate recipient for UN and
Government of Burma programs. In response to the February
call for proposals, the CCM received two proposals -- from
Save the Children (US) and UNOPS. Following the PR criteria
established in January (reftel),members of the CCM Steering
Committee reviewed the two proposals, and recommended that
both organizations be selected as PRs rather than issuing
another call for proposals or opting for only one PR. During
the March 31 meeting, CCM members agreed that Save the
Children (US),which currently is PR for Global Fund grants
in Bangladesh and Nepal, and UNOPS, the current fund manager
for the Three Diseases Fund (3DF) in Burma, would be the two
PRs for a Round 9 grant. UNOPS would deploy a separate team
from the one currently handling 3DF operations to fulfill its
duties as PR under the Global Fund grant. Additionally, CCM
members recommended that UNOPS act as the sole procurement
agent for the GF grant, based on its procurement success with
the 3DF. Ministry of Health (MOH) officials agreed that
having one procurement agent would streamline the process and
improve the delivery of goods.


3. (C) DFID Health Advisor and donor representative to the
CCM Julia Kemp told us that the Minister of Health
wholeheartedly endorsed both UNOPS and Save the Children (US)
as PRs, noting that they have the experience necessary to
successfully implement a Global Fund grant. According to
Kemp, the Minister, who understands that the GOB is
prohibited from being the PR, recommended that UNOPS ensure
that Ministry of Health proposals are technically sound
before funding them. Save the Children (US) official Tory
Clawson highlighted that this is evidence that the GOB is

RANGOON 00000207 002.4 OF 002


willing to do what it can to ensure approval of the Global
Fund grant. The MOH does not want to be treated any
differently than other GF recipients, but the Minister
recognizes the need to follow the any special safeguards
imposed upon Burma because of its prior experience with the
Global Fund, she commented.


4. (C) Discussing the sub-recipient process, the CCM
members agreed that local NGOs and community-based
organizations (CBOs) must be registered with the MOH to
qualify for and implement GF grants. The Minister of Health
noted that the MOH will work with interested NGOs to approve
quickly any new registration applications. Additionally,
officials from the MOH and Foreign Affairs stressed that NGOs
must implement programs that fall within the parameters
agreed to in their respective MOUs. Kemp acknowledged that
the 3DF follows these regulations, providing grants to
registered local NGOs and working with partners to ensure
that they have MOU approval for programs.

Proposal Status
--------------


5. (SBU) The MOH, working with UN and INGO technical
advisors, recently finished a draft HIV/AIDS proposal, and
continues to write the TB and malaria proposals. According
to Kemp, the MOH would appreciate comments on the draft
proposals, including from donors. The CCM agreed to allow
wide circulation of the draft proposals, and established the
following timeline for proposal review:

-- April 8 First drafts of HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria
proposals, as well as the CCM
Governance Manual, circulated for comment

-- April 23 Comments submitted to the CCM

-- April 30 Second draft of HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria
proposals circulated for comment

-- April 30 Comments on CCM Governance Manual due

-- May 7 Comments due to CCM

Kemp stated that the CCM expects to endorse the final
proposal on May 15. The final budget request for the Round 9
application is USD 253 million over five years: USD 61
million for TB, USD 60 million for malaria, and USD 132
million for HIV/AIDS.


6. (SBU) Embassy Rangoon has circulated the draft HIV/AIDS
proposal and the CCM Governance Manual to the Department and
USAID/RDMA for comment, and will forward the TB and malaria
proposals as soon as they are received.

DINGER