Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi on Friday launched a framework to "harmonise" donor money for the public health sector.

"Some officials seem to believe government money from the budget... and donor money are separate," he said at a press conference after a meeting of donors in Pretoria.

"Donor money was considered a luxury... And we don't think that was correct."

The minister wanted money from donors to be channelled to where it was most needed, and to be audited.

The department's director general Precious Matsoso said they were working closely with the Treasury to make this happen.

Motsoaledi said the government had to do things differently to fix the country's ailing health system.

"We are painfully aware that South Africa is spending more money than many countries... but getting poorer results. We are coming together to try and improve co-ordination and relations with you, our development partners, both local and international."

Official development aid contributed between one and two percent to the country's gross domestic product.
Representatives from the US, UK, European Union, Canada, Japan, Cuba and the United Nations voiced their support for Motsoaledi's plan, particularly in the current financial environment.

Problems with development assistance in health included a large amount of diverse donors, a focus on specific illnesses, resulting in imbalances in the sector, duplication of funding objectives and pursuing "parallel agendas".

The government also identified the "deliberate by-passing" of its "existing policies and systems of official development assistance". This resulted in a "lack of ownership, leadership and co-operation from the government".

Motsoaledi said he was ready and willing to take on that leadership role.

The framework was consistent with the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness.

Donor aid under the framework would support the government's health policies and its drive to deliver quality healthcare. It would also help South Africa's attempt to reach its Millennium Development Goals of reducing the country's child mortality rate, maternal mortality rate, halve the spread of HIV by 2015 and reverse malaria and other major diseases.

Motsoaledi further said a quality and complaints office for the healthcare system had to be fast-tracked.

"I'm in a hurry... That office must be established this year," he said.

The office of standards and complaints would help improve the quality of healthcare in public facilities and extend to private facilities too. It would be divided into three units – an inspectorate, an office for accreditation and an ombudsman for complaints.

It would address areas such as cleanliness, staff attitudes, safety and security of patients and long queues, a common feature in the public health sector.

Motsoaledi said funding for the office had already been discussed with the National Treasury.

The bill, the National Health Amendment Bill, would be released for public comment next week. It then had to go back to Parliament.