The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan
for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)
“The Role of PEPFAR in the Caribbean Region”
William Conn, PEPFAR Coordinator
Healthy Caribbean Coalition
Thursday, October 28, 2010
The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for
AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)
OVERVIEW
 PEPFAR is the global HIV/AIDS program launched in
2003 to combat and limit the spread of HIV/AIDS. It was
reauthorized by the U.S. Congress in July 2008.
 PEPFAR represents the largest commitment in history
made by one nation to a single disease and has:
 Treated over 2 million HIV-infected persons
 Provided care for over 10 million
 Prevented over 7 million new infections.
PEPFAR II
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Country Ownership
Capacity Building
Sustainability
Technical Assistance to support the National
Response
Linked to National and Regional Strategic Plans
Emphasis on strategic information
Evidence-based programs
Government to government Partnerships
Supports the Global Health Initiative (GHI) by
strengthening health systems
Caribbean Regional Partners (6,048,268)
 Jamaica (2,825,928) 1.8%
 Trinidad and Tobago
(1,229,953) 1.5%
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Suriname (524,143) 2.4%
Belize (322,100) 2.1%
Bahamas (307,552) 3%
Barbados (284,589) 1.2%
 Six Eastern Caribbean
states:
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Antigua and Barbuda (85,632)
Dominica (72,660)
Grenada (90,739)
St. Kitts and Nevis (40,131)
St. Lucia (160,267)
St. Vincent and the
Grenadines (104,574)
Two Regional Programs
 Pan Caribbean Partnership against HIV/AIDS
(PANCAP)
 Organization of Eastern Caribbean States
(OECS)
HIV/AIDS CARIBBEAN Region
 The Caribbean has the second highest rate of
HIV/AIDS prevalence in the world after Sub-Saharan
Africa.
 The epidemic is the leading cause of death among
adults ages 25-44 years of age and has left nearly
quarter of a million Caribbean children orphaned.
 In 2007, approximately 14,000 Caribbean nationals
died of AIDS, and an estimated 20,000 people were
newly infected with HIV.
Bi-lateral PEPFAR programs in Haiti, Guyana and the
Dominican Republic under PEPFAR l
PEPFAR – USG Agencies
 Based at U.S. Embassy Eastern Caribbean,
Barbados
 Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC)
 Department of Defense (DOD)
 Peace Corps (OECS, Belize, Jamaica, Suriname)
 Health Resources & Service Administration
(HRSA)
 United States Agency for International
Development (USAID) Eastern Caribbean and
Jamaica Missions
 State Department (With U.S. Embassies in
Bahamas, Belize, Jamaica, Suriname, Trinidad)
Caribbean Regional Partnership Framework
Planning Documents: Strategy,
Implementation Plan, Operational Plan,
and Annual Work Plans
 Caribbean Regional Partnership Framework
 Completed and approved 5-year strategy
 Partnership Framework Implementation Plan
 Completed 5-year implementation plan
 Annual Regional Operational Plan
 Linked to fiscal year budget submitted every
October
 Country and Partner work plans
USG Caribbean Partnership Framework
Partnership Framework Implementation Plan
Goal Areas:
 Prevention
 Strategic Information
 Laboratory Strengthening
 Health Systems Strengthening
Prevention for Most-at-risk-populations
 Develop a Comprehensive Approach
 Expand Services
 Reduce Stigma and Discrimination
 Establish Referral Systems
Strategic Information
 Collect information to characterize the
epidemic
 Implement M&E strategies (NSPs)
 Build SI capacity
 Harmonize data collection (HMIS)
Laboratory Strengthening
 Support Caribbean-led reorganization to
create a sustainable regional laboratory
network
 Assist governments and regional public
health agencies to improve the scope and
quality of HIV diagnostic and laboratory
services and systems
Health Systems Strengthening
 Improve HRH systems as part of GHI
 Improve Financial management capacity of
national HIV programs
 Improve integration and efficiency of national
HIV partners (Harmonization)
 Strengthen national leadership and
governance in HIV programming
What is the Role of PEPFAR in the
Caribbean Region?
 Coordination
 U.S. Government agencies
 Other donors and partners, PAHO, Clinton
Foundation, Global Fund, UNAIDS, DfID, GTZ,
etc.
 Regional partners, PANCAP, OECS
 Country partners, National AIDS Programs
 NGO, civil society
 Private sector
 Program Efficiency
 Use of scare resources for sustainable programs
Partnership Framework Official Signings
(Barbados and the OECS, PANCAP, Bahamas, Belize, Jamaica, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago)
Thank You!
For further information, please visit:
www.PEPFAR.gov