January 2021 Monthly Meeting Held Under High Presidency of Senior Minister His Excellency Ieng Mouly
Senior Minister His Excellency Ieng Mouly, Chair of the National AIDS Authority, presided over the January 2021 monthly meeting organized by the Authority on the morning of Tuesday, 2 February 2021. In attendance at the meeting were Excellencies, Lok Chumteavs, ladies, gentlemen, and misses, the vice chairs, secretary general, deputy secretaries general, advisors, assistants, department directors, deputy department directors, and office heads in a total numbers of 47 participants.
The purpose of the meeting is:
- To report on the update activities undertaken by the Top Management and Secretariat General of the National AIDS Authority.
- To grasp the situation concerning epidemic, HIV response goal, and intervention.
- To be informed of the achievements attained, impediments emerging in the implementation of action plans, and formulation of action plans to be implemented in the coming month.
To begin, His Excellency the Senior Minister welcomed all of the participating public servants and informed them of the meeting agenda as follows:
1) Presentation on the 2021 January work activity results carried out by the Top Management and Secretariat General by H.E. Chhim Khindareth.
2) Presentation on the priorities of the Fifth National Strategic Plan for 2021 by H.E. Tia Phalla, vice chair in charge of technical matters.
3) Conversation of His Excellency the Senior Minister.
4) Miscellaneous issues.
After that, His Excellency the Senior Minister permitted Secretary General H.E. Chhim Khindareth to present the report on the results of work activities performed by the NAA Top Management and Secretariat General in January 2021 and the goal set for February.
With the permission granted by His Excellency the Senior Minister, Secretary General H.E. Chhim Khindareth made the presentation, focusing on the key points related to the work activity results as follows:
I. Presentation on the work activity results of the Top Management and Secretary General.
1. Work activities achieved:
• Having organized the first meeting of the Technical Council.
• Having organized weekly and monthly meetings.
• Having organized meetings to review the Sor Chor Nor 213 indicators.
• Having prepared the 2021 action plan and budget of the NAA Secretariat General.
• Having prepared the 2021 petty cash to be incorporated in the Public Financial Management Information System (FMIS).
• Having finalized the global protection guidelines.
• Having organized the Fast-Track City strategy on HIV response in Battambang Province.
• Having shared out responsibilities for the Fifth Strategic Plan and Sor Chor Nor 213 Letter.
2. Challenges:
• The COVID-19 situation has continued affecting the implementation of the HIV/AIDS response activity.
• The procedures for expenditures have been revised and there are restrictions on the spending of national budget.
• No budget has been allocated for activities in early 2021.
• The number of new infections is still high, especially among the MSMs.
• The establishment of the municipal, district, khan, commune, and sangkat AIDS committees has not yet been implemented.
3. Steps for the coming month:
• To urge and encourage the implementation of innovation in HIV/AIDS response.
• To urge the setting up of AIDS committees in municipalities, districts, khans, communes, and sangkats.
• To urge the integration of activities into HIV/AIDS response and provision of funding into the AIDS Committees at ministries, institutions, capital city, provinces, municipalities, districts, khans, communes, and sangkats.
II. Presentation on the priorities of the Fifth National Strategic Plan for 2021 by H.E. Tia Phalla:
• To establish schedules according to the sustainable roadmap from 2018 to 2030.
• The Sustainable Development Goals shall be implemented in compliance with Notification Sor Chor Nor Sor Sor 213 and Fifth National Strategic Plan for a Comprehensive, Multisectoral Response to HIV/AIDS at the national and subnational levels.
• To provide intervention priorities to geographical regions, especially to speeding up the Fast-Track City on HIV response.
• To attain success, the National AIDS Authority is the implementer of national policies and leads, coordinates, monitors, and evaluates ministries, institutions, capital city, provinces, municipalities, and nongovernmental organizations.
• Every Department shall explicitly perform its tasks according to indicators/objectives.
• The right things shall be done by giving encouragement as a priority, such as offering funds, roles, and responsibilities.
• Policies shall be reviewed with other various institutions to change the behavior and utilization of resources so as to address impediments to determine more sustainable approaches.
• The 3 more things need to be done; thus, indicators have been set in addition to the current main 3 indicators
III. Conversation of His Excellency the Senior Minister:
Afterwards, the meeting moved to the third agenda item, with His Excellency the Senior Minister chatting and offering recommendations on the key issues as follows:
1) The COVID-19 problem has not yet returned to its original state. Every country has experienced alarming budget deficit and serious economic crises. Nonetheless, Cambodia has not been affected economically at all, and the Royal Government has as well doled out cash to the poor, new mothers, female workers, and people living with HIV. We must observe the measures, “3 Don’ts and 3 Protects,” to prevent COVID-19 transmission. The 3 Protections are: 1) wearing facemask correctly, 2) always maintaining clean hygiene by using clean water to wash hands with soap or alcohol, 3) keeping safe (1.5 meter) distance and social distance from each other, and advising overseas-returning workers to stay in quarantine. Cambodia, too, has prepared 1 million doses, generously donated by the People's Republic of China Government, to vaccinate the public servants and citizens. The 3 Don’ts mean, 1) don’t go to closed places where no air comes in or out and where air conditioners are used heavily; 2) don’t go to crowded areas, areas of large gathering, or jam-packed events, and 3) don’t stay close to or touch each other--instead raising hands to salute each other, hailing each other, and nodding to each other—and don’t hug each other or hold each other’s hand, and so forth.
2) HIV response Fast Track City workshops should be organized in all provinces, districts, khans, communes, and sangkats by taking priority provinces, such as Phnom Penh City and the provinces of Battambang, Banteay Meanchey, and Siem Reap to: 1) get AIDS Committees in the capital city, provinces, municipalities, districts/khans, and communes/sangkats to function. As regards communes/sangkats, it is easy for them to: 1) organize including, as AIDS committee members, the Women and Children Affairs Committee, nongovernmental organizations, and influential social people, 2) advise them on how to organize work activities according to specific situation, and 3) guide them on how to use social service budgets.
3) To check whether Provincial AIDS Committees have already operated and whether AIDS committees at the district, commune, and sangkat levels have already been organized. In addition, should there be international and nongovernmental organizations performing AIDS works in provinces, they must be included as provincial AIDS committee members.
4) Works should be further undertaken in Kampong Speu Province in order to find out whether AIDS committees have already been set up and whether they have already functioned, carried out activities, and mapped out plans.
5) In 2021, in order to achieve the goal of the Sor Chor Nor 213 principle, measures should be taken to strengthen the mechanisms of AIDS Committees and Secretariats in the capital city and provinces and at ministries, partner institutions, and nongovernmental organizations. Moreover, AIDS committees should be set up in all the districts, khans, communes, and sangkats of the capital city and provinces, and budget planning prepared to promote and enhance the work of fighting AIDS.
6) Meetings should be held with the working groups responsible for each strategy specified in the Fifth National Strategic Plan to discuss searching for mechanisms to promote the combating AIDS work.
7) Excellencies and Lok Chumteavs responsible for ministries and provinces should hold meetings with NAA Vice Chair H.E. Dr. Tia Phalla to look at and discuss key work activities in accordance with each strategic principle policy, Sor Chor Nor 213 principle, and Global Fund principle. Excellencies and Lok Chumteavs, the vice chairs, should be assigned to take charge of AIDS works in districts/khans of the four priority provinces/municipalities of Fast-Track City on HIV response.
8) As regards the MSMs with new high infections, study should be conducted to find out clearly their sources and measures taken to stem the transmission.
9) Working in groups is asked to continue their tasks, with H.E. Dr. Tia Phalla as technician, Secretariat General as implementer, and Departments as supporter.
At the end, His Excellency the Senior Minister encouraged and advised all the officials to further efforts, focusing attention on enhancing their tasks. We all shall continue to check and monitor the implementation of Sor Chor Nor 213 in order to prevent new infections. The Secretariat General should continue to organize training courses to strengthen the officials’ capacity and carry on with the institutional works smoothly to make headway. It should strive to work hard, not be apathetic, have good internal solidarity, and observe discipline and working hours.
The meeting concluded at 11.25 am in an extremely pleasant and cordial atmosphere.
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