HIV infection is the leading cause of death in women of reproductive age. (Photo Courtesy UNAIDS/P.Virot)

Harare — ZIMBABWE will receive about US$180 million from the Global Fund to Fight HIV and Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria, with the first phase of the grant expected in January next year.

The grant comes after the Government and the Global Fund signed for the release of the money two weeks ago in Geneva, Switzerland.

This will see the Government being able to implement HIV and Aids, tuberculosis and malaria programmes for Round Eight, beginning in January.

Global Fund to Fight HIV and Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria country co-ordinating mechanism manager Mr Rangarirai Chiteure yesterday said Zimbabwe's proposal of US$179 959 145 was signed on November 6.

"The first phase of the grant is expected to start in January next year and run until December 2011," he said.

The recently-signed grant would see US$84,6 million being channelled towards fighting HIV and Aids, US$28,2 million would go towards TB while malaria programmes would receive US$32,8 million with the Health Strengthen-ing Systems earmarked to get US$34,2 million.

Mr Chiteure said once the money was released, the HIV component was expected to cover adoption of safer sexual behaviour and increase the number of people, including children, tested for HIV.

The funding is expected to reduce mother-to-child transmissions of HIV and expand care, treatment and support programmes in both the public and private sectors.

The TB component will cater for expansion of the Directly Observed Treatment Short-Course and enhance TB and HIV and Aids collaboration.

It is also expected to strengthen mechanisms for co-ordination, collaboration and accountability among HIV positive people's networks.

Mr Chiteure said funding for malaria was earmarked to reduce the incidence of the mosquito-borne disease from 10 percent to 6,5 percent of the population by 2014.

In the grant proposal, Government committed itself to spraying at least 90 percent of households in targeted malaria-prone areas by 2014 and provide treated mosquito nets to 85 percent of the same population over the same period.

Other targets earmarked by the malaria component include proper management of malaria, awareness campaigns and strengthening of evidence-based programmes.

The Health Strengthening Systems component -- aimed at enhancing the capacity of the health sector to effectively deliver scaled-up treatment for HIV, malaria and TB -- is expected to reverse the brain drain through motivation of community health workers.

This is the fourth time that Zimbabwe is receiving money under the Global Fund since its inception in 2002.