FHI - FHI and Partners to Implement Comprehensive Six-Year Project in Zambia

The funds were awarded by the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief through the US Agency for International Development for the years 2004 through 2010.

The Zambian HIV/AIDS Prevention, Care and Treatment (PCT) program seeks to meet ambitious program goals set by the Zambian government, the Emergency Plan, and USAID by expanding access to services throughout the prevention-to-care continuum. The project will implement strategies to initiate, improve, and scale up such critical services as voluntary counseling and testing, prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission, and clinical care for people living with HIV and AIDS, including antiretroviral treatment programs.

Capacity building is a key project strategy. The project team plans to build capacity to provide high-quality services and strengthen links between the healthcare sector and the community to increase demand for services. The team will support provincial- and district-level planning and the implementation of a referral network that links clinical services with community and support services. Advanced training will be available for Zambian healthcare professionals to improve skills in prevention, care, and treatment, and a small grants program will support initiatives proposed by community-based organizations.

With a central office in Lusaka to ensure coordination with Zambian and US government agencies, the project will be implemented in five provinces: Central, Copperbelt, Northern, North Western, and Luapula.

FHI's primary partners on the project are Management Sciences for Health and the International HIV/AIDS Alliance. Associate partners are the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Kara Counselling and Training Trust, the Churches Health Association of Zambia (CHAZ), Expanded Church Response, and the International Youth Foundation.

Zambia is among the countries in the world hardest hit by HIV, with prevalence in some urban areas as high as 23 percent. More than a million Zambians today are living with the infection, and 1.2 million Zambian children are orphans, many because of AIDS.