Compassion Spotlight
	Globally, PEPFAR supported life-saving ARV treatment for approximately 1.73 million men, women, and children (as of March 2008). In the 15 focus countries, PEPFAR supported prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission services for women during more than 12.7 million pregnancies and prevented an estimated 194,000 infant HIV infections. PEPFAR has supported care for nearly 6.6 million people, including more than 2.7 million orphans and vulnerable children (as of September 2007). More than 80% of PEPFAR partners are local organizations. Faith-based organizations are a vital part of this work and constitute nearly a quarter of all PEPFAR partners.

The Need
The Response
   New Partners Initiative
   Results

The Need

• The HIV/AIDS pandemic is among the most far-reaching health crises the world has ever seen.
• More than 25 million people have died from AIDS, and more than 33 million people are living with HIV worldwide.
• More than 7,400 individuals lose their lives to AIDS around the world each day.
• Five years ago, it was questionable whether HIV prevention, treatment, and care could successfully be provided in resource-limited settings.
• Prior to The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), it is estimated that only 50,000 people living with HIV in all of Sub-Saharan Africa were receiving antiretroviral (ARV) treatment.

The Response

Announced in 2003, PEPFAR is the largest commitment by a single nation to an international health initiative. It is designed to combat HIV/AIDS around the world, with a special emphasis on 15 focus countries that together account for approximately half of the world’s HIV infections. PEPFAR’s goals for the program’s first 5 years include:

• treating 2 million people;
• preventing 7 million new infections; and
• providing care to 10 million people, including orphans and vulnerable children.

PEPFAR embodies the principles of the FBCI on a massive, international scale, with FBCOs operating as central partners in achieving its expansive prevention, treatment, and care goals. These partners possess the cultural know-how, dedicated volunteers, strong trust relationships, social networks, facilities, and other key resources that are critical to effective service. In addition, the compassion of the individuals who serve through FBCOs brings a level of caring and support that government alone rarely offers.

Faith-based organizations are an essential part of this sector, providing between 30% and 70% of healthcare in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to estimates by the World Health Organization. Perhaps most importantly, well-trained and well-equipped indigenous organizations can provide sustainability for ongoing response.

• In FY 2007, PEPFAR partnered with 2,217 local organizations; up from 1,588 in 2004. More than 80% of all direct partners and sub-partners receiving funding were local organizations.
• Faith-based organizations are a vital part of this work, representing nearly a quarter of all local partners.
• With a heavy emphasis on building long-term local response capabilities, PEPFAR estimates its investment in network development, human resources, and local organization capacity development in FY 2007 at roughly $640 million.
• From FY 2004 through FY 2007, PEPFAR supported nearly 2.6 million training encounters for health care workers. In FY 2006 and 2007, PEPFAR provided approximately $281 million to support training activities.

PEPFAR also works with its international implementing partners to ensure that there are strategies in place to hand over programs to local organizations as those groups develop the capacity to work directly with the U.S. government.

New Partners Initiative
On World AIDS Day 2005, President Bush launched the $200 million New Partners Initiative (NPI), part of PEPFAR’s broader effort to increase the number of local organizations, including FBCOs, that work with PEPFAR. 27 NPI grants have been announced on recent World AIDS Day and a third round will be announced in 2008.

Through NPI, PEPFAR is enhancing the technical and organizational capacity of local partners, and working to ensure sustainable, high-quality HIV/AIDS programs by building community ownership. NPI supports organizations that have previously worked as PEPFAR subpartners—receiving PEPFAR funds through larger organizations—in graduating to prime partner status. Nearly half of NPI’s direct grantees to date had previously been PEPFAR subpartners. Each NPI grantee receives comprehensive technical and organizational support, including increasing financial and reporting capacity, enabling them to compete not only for PEPFAR resources but also for grants and contracts from other funding sources.

Results
PEPFAR has met its initial treatment goal and is on track to meet it initial treatment and care goals. PEPFAR has:

• Supported life-saving ARV treatment for more than 2 million individuals in sub-Saharan Africa alone and hundreds of thousands more worldwide
• Helped ensure that nearly 240,000 babies have been born HIV-free due to support for programs that prevent transmission from mother to child
• Supported care for more than 10.1 million people, including more than 4 million orphans and vulnerable children worldwide. PEPFAR also supported more than 57 million counseling and testing sessions for men, women, and children in PEPFAR's 15 focus countries

PEPFAR has also supported prevention efforts in the 15 focus countries:

• Prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission services for women during more than 12.7 million pregnancies.
• ARV prophylaxis for women in more than one million pregnancies.
• Prevention of an estimated 240,000 infant HIV infections.

In addition, as of September 2007, the initiative supported

• care for nearly 10.1 million people, including care for more than 4 million orphans and vulnerable children; and
• more than 57 million counseling and testing sessions for men, women, and children.

On July 30, 2008, President Bush signed into law H.R. 5501, the Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act, authorizing up to $48 billion to combat global HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. Under this legislation, the next phase of the American people's commitment to those suffering from HIV/AIDS will support treatment for at least three million people; prevention of 12 million new infections; and care for 12 million people, including five million orphans and vulnerable children.