Africa Public Health Foundation (APHF), through the CholGEN programme, has strengthened the capacity of grants and finance officers from seven African Union Member States through a five-day training on Institutional Systems Strengthening, Grant Management and Donor Financial Accountability.
The training brought together 14 grants finance officers and program officers/managers from government institutions in Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Nigeria, Cameroon, Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia. The participants are responsible for grants management, financial management, reporting, compliance and accountability within their respective institutions.
The training was designed to strengthen participants’ ability to manage donor-funded grants effectively while building stronger institutional systems that promote accountability, transparency and sustainable performance
Moving Beyond Compliance
A central theme of the training was the importance of looking beyond individual financial transactions or compliance requirements and understanding the broader institutional systems that influence grant performance.
Participants were introduced to systems-thinking approaches that enable institutions to identify the root causes of challenges, understand relationships between different parts of an organization and identify opportunities for sustainable improvement.
The training also explored how human behaviour and organizational culture influence the way systems function in practice. Participants examined the role of leadership, incentives, workload, organizational norms, decision-making and power dynamics in shaping institutional performance.
Strengthening Governance and People
Governance and accountability formed another important component of the training. Participants explored how clearly defined roles, decision-making authority, oversight mechanisms and accountability structures can contribute to stronger institutional systems and better stewardship of donor resources.
The training also equipped participants with practical mentorship and coaching skills. These skills are intended to enable grants and finance officers to support colleagues in identifying weaknesses, improving practices and embedding stronger systems within their institutions.
“Strengthening institutions is ultimately about strengthening both systems and people,” was a key message throughout the learning journey, emphasizing that sustainable change requires effective processes as well as individuals who are equipped and empowered to apply them.
Strengthening the Grant Lifecycle
Participants also strengthened their understanding of the full grant management lifecycle, covering opportunity identification and proposal development, award and planning, implementation, monitoring, reporting and close-out.Practical sessions focused on identifying grant risks and institutional vulnerabilities and applying appropriate internal controls and risk-management measures to mitigate them.
The final day focused on financial accountability, donor compliance and audit readiness, with participants examining the importance of accurate financial reporting, adequate supporting documentation, authorization controls, risk management and maintaining a clear audit trail.
A practical crisis simulation and action-planning exercise enabled participants to apply lessons from the five days to realistic institutional and grant-management scenarios.
Learning Across Borders
With participants drawn from seven countries, the training provided an opportunity for cross-country peer learning and experience sharing. Participants compared institutional practices, discussed common challenges and explored solutions that could be adapted to their respective national and organizational contexts.The training concluded with individual and institutional action planning, allowing participants to identify priority areas where they can apply the knowledge and tools gained within their organizations.
Building Stronger Institutions for Africa’s Public Health
The training forms part of APHF’s broader commitment to strengthening institutional capacity and ensuring that resources invested in public health programmes are managed effectively, transparently and sustainably.
By equipping grants and finance officers with practical skills in systems thinking, governance, mentorship, grant management, financial accountability and donor compliance, APHF is supporting stronger institutions capable of effectively managing donor investments and contributing to improved public health outcomes across Africa.
The five-day learning journey ultimately reinforced a simple but important principle: effective grant management is not only about accounting for resources, it is about building the systems, people and accountability structures that ensure those resources deliver lasting impact.
