The Prime Minister, Dr Navinchandra Ramgoolam, was briefed, this afternoon, at the New Treasury Building in Port Louis, on the one-week mission conducted by a team from the Global Fund, a funding mechanism established in 2002 to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, regarding its support in Mauritius’ combat against HIV/AIDS.

The team comprised the Senior Fund Portfolio Manager, Dr Joshua Galjour, and the Senior Programme Officer, Mr Sylvain Parent.
In a statement, after the meeting, Dr Galjour highlighted that since 2010, the Global Fund had already disbursed more than US$ 18 million to assist Mauritius in the fight against HIV/AIDS. He also informed that a grant of US$ 2.3 million was being managed by the National AIDS Secretariat, operating under the aegis of the Ministry of Health and Wellness, to support the HIV response over a three-year period, from 2024 to 2026.
The Senior Fund Portfolio Manager indicated as well that Mauritius had already financed more than 80% of its response to HIV/AIDS while the Global Fund contributed some 8% of the global needs with a focus on community aspects, harm reduction, and population groups that were particularly vulnerable to HIV.
According to Dr Galjour, the results were positive. He thus commended the commitment of stakeholders, the strong collaboration between the government and civil society actors, along with the work carried out by the National Social Inclusion Foundation in helping organisations at the community level.
The Global Fund Representative remarked however that though significant strides had been made, there remained work to be done. He hence highlighted the need to aid the Ministry of Health and Wellness concerning the quality of data in order to better monitor the evolution of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in terms of the affected population group, prevalence and the number of new cases. “But I believe we are on the right track, and we will remain available to support the National AIDS Secretariat in these efforts,” added Dr Galjour.