The TIMS (TB in the Mining Sector) Grant is funded by the Global Fund to contribute towards the reduction of the TB burden in the mining sector in Southern African countries.
To ensure key population in southern Africa have access to quality TB prevention and treatment services and improved working and living environment.
Yes, regional grants are different from country grants. Regional grants bring together several countries within a region to address a particular disease burden such as TB. Generally, programmatic interventions in regional grants are scaled up and replicated in participating countries. Country grants on the other hand only respond to the disease burden in the specific country.
A regional response to the TB epidemic is required because of the relationship between mobility and TB. The migration of mineworkers across regions within a country and across countries makes TB in the mining sector a complex regional problem that can only be effectively addressed at a regional level than country level. No one country can eradicate TB given these migration patterns that act as vehicles of transmission.
- Health sector governance and planning– This will be achieved through the implementation of the Declaration of TB in the Mining Sector Protocol signed by all SADC countries. All other interventions in this FR will be anchored in the governance structure and operational plan for TIMS to be developed under this module.
- TB Care and treatment- The project shall focus at mitigating the determinants of TB in the mining sector emanating from working conditions and living conditions of mineworkers, mobility of mineworkers, interaction with communities around the mine and exposure to HIV infection among others. Funds are requested to improve occupational health and compensation systems, mine health and safety SOPs and development of private sector TIMS initiatives.
- Health Management Information Systems and M&E-Interventions will provide data to support coordination, planning and accountability. Interventions will build on TB information and M&E systems developed in TIMS 1 and 2. These include the Cross-Border Referral System (CBRS) and Regional TIMS dashboard. The interventions are also informed by recommendations of CBRS and RHMIS review done in 2018
- Removing Human Rights and Gender Barriers to TB Services–The focus shall be to identify human rights and gender barriers to accessing TB and OH health services and human rights violations among key populations; advocate and engage SADC countries through the regional coordination mechanism and at country level to re-orient TB programmes to address the barriers.
- Community Systems Strengthening–The focus of the community systems strengthening will be on strengthening community- based monitoring and the use of data collected from this process to promote accountability and inform the development of a human rights violations reporting systems led by key populations.
The beneficiaries of the TIMS Grant include these key populations:
- Current mineworkers: this is any person who works in a mine of any type (large, medium, small, artisanal, formal or informal) regardless of their immigration or employment status (full-time/part-time, contract, sub-contract or casual).
- Ex-mineworkers: these constitute any person who previously worked in a mine, regardless of their immigration or employment status, whether full time/part time, contract, sub-contract or casual.
- Families of both current and ex-mineworkers, including their spouses and children.
- Communities around the mines and communities in the labour-sending areas. In peri-mining areas, women and sex workers constitute key affected populations, given their vulnerability to HIV infection due to their interaction with the large mine worker population.
TIMS Phase III covers 15 countries in the SADC region Angola, Botswana, DRC, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
TIMS III takes a differentiated approach where interventions to be implemented in each country have been selected based on the nature of the mining industry, progress made under TIMS 1 and 2 and implementability of the intervention in the country and the need to avoid “one size fits all” approach.
This is a 3 year grant. The grant went live in January 2021 and will conclude in December 2024.
Like many other grants funding will end. However, there is an expectation that third year funding will be awarded by the Global Fund based on performance. In addition, the project management team will also actively explore alternative continuing funding during the life of the grant. Important also, is that interventions in this grant are ultimately embedded within country programmes. In order to ensure this happens, some of the interventions will have sustainability plans to ensure longevity beyond the period of the grant.
In this project, ECSA-HC is responsible for management of all interventions as the Principal Recipient of the grant. ECSA-HC will collaborate with the SADC Secretariat who will play and enhanced role in implementing the grant.
ECSA-HC is the PR of the TIMS Grant. The PR is the entity legally responsible for program results and financial accountability.
The role of the RCM is to serve as the principal oversight body to the TIMS Grant.
While CCMs will have no official role on the TIMS Grant, they may conduct site visits as part of their oversight role for Global Fund grants in their respective countries. CCMs are also able to participate in the grant through the RCM.
The role of the NTCP Office is to serve as focal or entry point for the TIMS Grant into the respective countries. NTP programs are considered a key program partner for the grant.
Different stakeholders can support the TIMS Grant by greater collaboration within and across governments, civil society organizations, communities, researchers, private sector companies and development agencies. Stakeholders also support the TIMS grant through participations in regional structures like Southern African Development Community (SADC), Regional Coordinating Mechanism (RCM) and the PIC (Programme Implementation Committee).
The PR has a comprehensive communications plan to ensure that all stakeholders are being engaged adequately. The stakeholders for this project encompass a wide group from miners to ministers. The information on the project progress will be communicated via the following channels:
- The TIMS website is the information hub for the project and is available to all stakeholders, progress is documented here. However, key stakeholder have secure logins to information housed on the site specific to them.
- E-mail newsletter on the key development/highlights of the project progress will be sent to key stakeholders.
- Quarterly report on the project progress, which is more comprehensive than the newsletter, will be sent to key stakeholders.
- The PR will also engage local media to disseminate information about TIMS initiatives to stakeholders in mining communities.
- In addition, the PR will present at conferences locally and internationally to share lessons learned and best practices in designing, implementing and managing large and complex regional grants.