(Pictured: Allan Maleche, Executive Director KELIN, Jones Blantari LEAHN CFP Ghana, Professor Nick Crofts and Zimba Isaac, LEAHN CFP Zambia)
Please go to the KELIN website for the original post and for links to documents relating to the meeting.
“This was a key meeting for us being the third and final year of the regional grant. We structured the meeting to focus on empowering the participants on how to leverage on the Global Fund country grants to take forward some of the gains seen as a result of the implementation of the regional grant. This will ensure that the good work of the grant does not end here, but is replicated in all ten program countries.”
These were the reflections of Allan Maleche, Executive Director KELIN in his closing remarks at the end of a three-day regional forum for law enforcement officers and health care workers. The meeting brought together 80 law enforcement officers, health care workers, key population experts, members of Global Fund Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCMs) and civil society organisations from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Botswana, Malawi, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Seychelles and Zambia.
The forum allowed participants to reflect on some of the achievements they have made over the three years. Superintendent of Police, Isaac Zimba, National HIV and AIDS Coordinator Zambia Police Service stated that, “It’s been a fruitful three years of being a part of this project with KELIN since 2016. As a result of which the Zambia police service has been able to build the capacity of its officers on the rights of key populations and also ensure that persons arrested are protected from TB and can access TB Services as they await trial. We still need a lot of technical support from KELIN we thus urge the Global Fund and other funders to continue funding such programs that advocate for removing of legal barriers for HIV & TB.”
At the end of the forum participants committed to nominate country focal persons who will lead in monitoring the implementation of the country work plans that seek to do a number of things including documenting success stories. KELIN committed to sharing the workshop report within two weeks, and sharing it with CCM members and key persons at the Global Fund secretariat for follow up.
