The incidence of HIV in Swaziland has stabilized, but the country continues to have the world’s highest estimated prevalence rate of HIV-infected adults. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 26 percent of adults aged 15 to 49-years old in Swaziland are HIV-positive. USAID, through PEPFAR, is partnering with ICAP, a global health center at Columbia University, to evaluate an innovative approach to HIV prevention in countries like Swaziland. The study is one of three pilots in the country described in The Lancet article ”HIV prevention: new pilots for beleaguered Swaziland,” published on January 12.
The article describes Swaziland’s efforts to answer a critical HIV prevention question: How can the high efficacy of antiretroviral-based prevention found in clinical trials be translated into effective programs? In other words, how can we turn science into practice? By evaluating different approaches to providing HIV treatment for HIV+ women, USAID’s partnership with ICAP will help answer this question for one of the groups made most vulnerable by the epidemic: pregnant women living with HIV.
The story behind the headline? USAID’s partnership with ICAP is part of an over $20 million investment in implementation science made by the Agency and as part of outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s vision for an AIDS-free generation. Through the Annual Program Statement (APS) “Implementation Science Research to Support Programs under PEPFAR,” USAID supports eight studies in eight of the African countries hardest hit by HIV/AIDS. In addition to addressing the critical HIV prevention question posed in The Lancet article, the scope of the APS provides a unique opportunity to fund cutting-edge research in a wide range of HIV-specific program areas. These studies aim to improve programs across the prevention, care, and treatment continuum. Data gathered will support efforts to prevent new infections and save lives.
As stated in the recent PEPFAR Blueprint (PDF), “Science must continue to guide our efforts” and “it is science that will underpin all our efforts to achieve the goal [of an AIDS-free generation] and save even more lives.” USAID’s commitment and investments in implementation science are a driving force in these efforts.
Learn more about USAID’s investments in implementation science in the Issue Brief “Implementation Science Research to Support Programs under PEPFAR.”
Contribute to the search for innovations to address key implementation science questions. The second round of the APS solicitation is public and the deadline for concept paper submissions is January 30, 2013. USAID anticipates awarding up to an additional $11 million of funding through the second round, with the maximum for a single application set at $1.8 million over three years.
