South Sudan’s Network of Aids Service Organisations (NASSOS) has raised concerns over what they term the country’s exclusion from the global fund implementation.

In a communique issued after the members’ annual general meeting in Juba, NASSOS stated that the organisation had been intentionally left out of the implementation process.

“We NASOSS members drawn from 10 states and 1 administrative area (Pibor) see that there is a lack of transparency and a high level of conflict of interest in the way CSOs are involved in the implementation process,” the communique stated in part.

It alleged that their issues were brought to the Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) and UNDP’s attention, but that they are yet to receive a clear explanation about their situation.

The importance of community and civil society organisations is explained in-depth on the Global Fund organization’s website.

“At the country level, community and civil society representatives participate actively in the decision-making process through membership in the Country Coordinating Mechanism, the national body that is responsible for creating the requests for funding and overseeing implementation.”

“In addition to participation in the Country Coordinating Mechanism, community and civil society play a key role in ensuring a thorough and empowering country dialogue around the responses to AIDS, TB, and malaria,” the Global Fund states.

Community and civil society organizations are also crucial in influencing how government expenditures approach health and in sending messages that hold governments responsible and transparent.

The alleged marginalisation of CSOs and other Aids service organisations could jeopardise the Global Fund’s operations in the nation.

“We foresee that if such double standards on CSO engagement continue in HIV. TB and malaria interventions, there is a risk of the Global Fund Grant not achieving its intended purpose and the sustainable agenda will be a myth.”

NASSOS now wants their Board of Directors to convene promptly for more deliberation and endorsement of the communique, and for the communique to be shared directly with the Global Fund, copying the CCM, UNDP, and all relevant SRs.

They’ve also threatened a boycott of all Global Fund activities in the country.