afrol News, 7 January - Global Action for Children has today received half a million dollars grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to assist African governments to meet 15 percent commitment of the national budget to health.

The organisation's Executive Director Jennifer Delaney said the funding will boost the global advocacy which is critical towards improving government finance on health and health infrastructure.

"Funding will enable us to work with our African and global advocacy partners towards realising critical developments in health," she said.

In 2001, at the African Union summit in Abuja, Nigeria, member states pledged to commit 15 percent of their national budgets to health.

Analysts said sustainable health financing from governments in Africa is critical for implementing national health policies that improve health care infrastructure to address constant health challenges like HIV/AIDS, TB, child mortality, malaria, and other disease burdens that impede economic growth.

"In this new effort, advocates from Africa, Europe, and North America will build on and work together through transnational advocacy networks to hold African governments accountable to invest more in health care," GAC statement said.

Bill and Melinda Gates foundation supports a number of health programmes in Africa, most targeted to children and the poor.

In Lesotho, the Foundation supports paediatric access and treatment programmes, which also extend research work on the pandemic in collaboration with other partners and institutions.

GAC is dedicated to advocating for orphans and highly vulnerable children in the developing world. It works to increase funding and ensure it is spent effectively so all children have the health care, education, food, and protection they need to grow up in a safe and healthy environment.

By staff writer

© afrol News

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