 Interview with Bernard Mendy, Chairman, Country Coordinating Mechanism, The Gambia
You became Chair of the Gambia’s CCM in 2005. Since then, how has your role at Standard Chartered changed or evolved? It has been very challenging, time consuming in that the CCM role is over and above my existing role as Executive Director of the Bank, a totally new learning experience to be sitting with the experienced medical doctors and experts and self-fulfilling in serving my country through making a marked difference in the lives of others as well supporting the fight to save lives At the corporate level, my assuming this role has further helped in bringing SCB to a more prominent position at the international level in the fight against the three deadly diseases, HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis. I have as a result been much more involved also at the international level through participating in workshops and conferences held and in facilitating at workshops organized by the Global Fund and in-country. Your business skills clearly facilitate your role as Chair of the Gambia’s CCM, but improving performance of local development mechanisms is also dependent on cultural sensitivity. Since becoming Chairman, how have you increased your understanding of local culture? Absolutely. Yes indeed! It has not only increased my understanding but really enriched me given the cultural diversity and blend at the Country Coordinating Mechanism level. I have been able to better understand and appreciate various constituencies approach to and way of doing business and the personalities behind them and leveraged on some of their key strengths to ensure that not only were the objectives of the stakeholders achieved, but that there was consensus and open and frank deliberations in the CCM deliberations ( something that was very much lacking prior to my assumption of the Chair ) to ensure their buy in throughout the implementation process. The Gambian CCM members include government, NGOs, UN bilateral agencies, academic institutions, private sector organizations, religious organizations, and people living with HIV/AIDS. Why is it important to include such a diversity of voices? Firstly, these are constituencies that have to be ably represented on the Country Coordinating Mechanism in accordance with the Global Fund guidelines to ensure a cross representation of public, and private sectors, civil society and faith based organizations as well as PLWHA etc. We have therefore developed in 2006 our Standard Operating Procedures to govern our operations as an oversight institution in the Gambia for all Global Fund grants and programmes. Secondly, each of these constituencies have their relevant strengths, network to help in the outreach and requisite experience that could make a marked and favourable difference in the implementation of the programmes. Thirdly, it helps bring in the checks and balances cum transparency required at the opportune times, and this is key to success! What has been the greatest challenge that you have faced as Chair of the Gambia’s CCM? It has been from the onset, trying to fend off threats by some members of the public sector on the CCM when their views and actions were challenged just around the time that I assumed the Chair! I took them head on and we have since then turned to be better team players. We still do encounter such challenges which are being ably tackled in a professional and tactful manner. But on a more serious note, to have been Chair and managed to turnaround the Gambia CCM from being non performing to a classic case study of a model within the Global Fund and whose funds absorption rate was hiked from about 20% to over 80% within six months of assuming the Chair and without a Permanent Secretariat for that matter to assist us throughout that period until now. Other countries’ CCMs have funded Permanent Secretariats to support them. As Chair, you have helped to ensure that individual projects are more effectively prioritized and targeted to Gambia’s needs. What do you regard as a top priority project right now? The priorities currently are:
- To set up the CCM Permanent Secretariat having spent some two years lobbying for the funding for this
- To address the current issues facing one of the Principal Recipients which has affected the great performances as a result of some interference by the public sector
- To ensure that all three programmes maintain the momentum to continue to make the Gambia CCM a model to the rest of Global Fund world
How are you ensuring that the business skills and improvements that you bring to the CCM are built into the mechanism so that they will be sustained after your departure? Through:
- Ensuring that the Standard Operating Procedures are enforced and reviewed as required and in a timely manner by the CCM
- The institution of the CCM Permanent Secretariat and ensure that it works efficiently and effectively to support the CCM successfully execute its oversight responsibilities in a timely manner and in accordance with Global Fund guidelines
- Ensuring that there is in-house capacity and coaching to ensure a natural assumption of the Chair by the most suitable members and in accordance with the Standard Operating Procedures and Bye Laws
- Ensure that our working relationship with Gambia Government continues to be assured through periodic contacts and timely swift moves where hurdles or blockages may be anticipated during implementation
- Working closely with the President’s Office to revive the National Aid Council of the Gambia which is the apex body to drive the three ones
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