NIGERIA: Poor money management could endanger AIDS grants

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria says Nigeria may be risking the loss of millions of dollars in HIV/AIDS funding due to a lack of transparency and the failure of authorities to meet treatment targets.

In a letter obtained by Reuters through Nigeria's Country Coordination Mechanism, the Global Fund allegedly hinted at terminating two five-year grants totalling US $80 million after they had run for only two years, depending on the outcome of upcoming investigations.

"Serious concerns have been raised about grant implementation and the ability of the principal recipient to achieve the goals of the grants," said the letter from Global Fund headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.

Africa's most populous country ranks third in the world after India and South Africa in terms of the number of people living with HIV/AIDS.

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