HIV and AIDS Around the World
Photo: Jon Hrusa |
Strategic leadership – both in the U.S. and around the world – is essential if we are to turn the tide against the global AIDS pandemic. Every day, nearly 1,200 children around the world become infected with HIV, the vast majority through mother-to-child transmission. And without treatment, up to half of these children will die before their second birthday (UNAIDS, Towards Universal Access 2009).
The Foundation is committed to advocating for the expansion of services to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV and to provide care and treatment services for children, women, and families living with and affected by HIV and AIDS. Working closely every day with our numerous partners, including national governments, multilateral institutions, and other nongovernmental organizations, the Foundation provides a strong voice for women, children, and families across the globe.
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U.S. Commitment to Fighting Global HIV and AIDS
Photo: Olivier Asselin |
In 2008, the U.S. Congress reauthorized the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to combat global HIV/AIDS – authorizing up to $48 billion over five years to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria worldwide. Originally launched in 2003, PEPFAR is the largest commitment by any single nation to combat HIV and AIDS.
As one of the largest providers of prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) services under PEPFAR, the Foundation works in 17 countries around the world to advocate for and implement PEPFAR programs to increase access to lifesaving prevention, care, and treatment services for women, children, and families living with and affected by HIV and AIDS.
Today, the Foundation continues to implement HIV and AID S programs and advocate for children and women around the world, ensuring that PEPFAR programs are effective on the ground and that U.S. funding continues to grow in order to turn the tide against HIV and AIDS.
As part of its current five-year implementation strategy (2010-2014), PEPFAR has placed special emphasis on PMTCT and pediatric care and treatment. PEPFAR is committed to reaching 80 percent of pregnant women with PMTCT services and reaching more infants and children with HIV testing and treatment services, while also forging critical linkages between maternal and child health services and HIV prevention, care, and treatment services.
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Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV
Photo: Bill McCarthy |
Every day, nearly 1,200 children become infected with HIV around the world – the vast majority through mother-to-child transmission of HIV. Fortunately, there are effective interventions that can significantly reduce the likelihood of HIV transmission from a mother to her baby, yet, it is estimated that only 45 percent of HIV-positive pregnant women worldwide have access to these critical PMTCT services (WHO, Towards Universal Access Progress Report, 2009).
The Foundation is working with national and multinational institutions – including the U.S. Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC), the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF, UNAIDS, Ministries of Health and national governments, as well as other global organizations – to place the needs of women and children at the forefront of the global AIDS response, and to advocate for dramatic scale-up of PMTCT services where they are needed most.
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Improving Children’s Access to HIV Care and Treatment Worldwide
 Photo: Jon Hrusa |
In 2008, approximately 2.1 million children around the world were living with HIV – the majority without access to the lifesaving medicines they need to prevent illness and premature death. Without medical treatment, up to half of all HIV-positive infants will die before their second birthdays (Newell et al., 2004).
For thousands of HIV-positive children, the antiretroviral therapy (ART) needed to treat their infection is not readily accessible for a variety of reasons – often due to the complexity and limited availability of pediatric HIV testing, limited availability of pediatric drug formulations, or simply because heath workers are not adequately trained to treat children with HIV and AIDS.
The Foundation is committed to advocating for better access to care and treatment services for children and families living with and affected by HIV, and working with governments to ensure that HIV-positive children are diagnosed and identified early so that they can begin treatment quickly and lead longer, healthier lives.
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Country-by-Country Advocacy
The Foundation works with its country-based staff to develop in-country advocacy plans to support the scale-up and provision of PMTCT and pediatric care and treatment services. Our advocacy efforts seek to enhance the reach of these important HIV prevention, care, and treatment programs in the countries where we work and to raise awareness of pediatric HIV/AIDS issues among national policymakers, key decision makers, the media, and other partners.
The Foundation will continue working with national governments, multilateral institutions, and other partners to advocate for scale-up of PMTCT and pediatric care and treatment services to achieve our goal of reducing new global pediatric HIV infections by one-half between 2009 and 2013.
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Maternal and Child Health & HIV and AIDS – A Critical Link (2010 African Union Summit, Kampala, Uganda)
Photo: Jon Hrusa
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