HIV/AIDS Subgrantees' Projects

CARE International

The STRONGER program implemented by CARE is now in tis second phase. STRONGER supports 9 partner community-based organizations (CBOs) to implement activities in the areas of prevention, palliative care and orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in order to improve the lives of people living with or affected by AIDS. Taking an innovative approach to planned activities, STRONGER 2 is working also on highlighting areas of programming and service gaps for Most At Risk Populations (MARPS) and People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). The activities supported by this program include improving MARPs' access to prevention centers and educational messages, providing PLHIV with better access and better quality care and support, and making ARV treatment literacy information available among PLHIV. Advocating basic human rights will be an important component of the program. CARE will make it one of its main goals to develop the internal capacity of its CBO partners.

Center for Community Health and Development (COHED)

Geographic Focus: Ha Long City (Quang Ninh province)
Target Population: PLHIV with a focus on women

COHED' care and support program focuses on women living with HIV/AIDS, with the intention of improving their quality of live through empowerment for positive living, home and club-based care, and clinic referrals, including for anti-retroviral treatment. Particular emphasis is put on building the capacity of the project beneficiaries to enable them to gradually become involved in the running and management of the program.

Harvard University

Geographic Focus: Nationwide
Target Population: National and local policymakers, leaders

Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, in collaboration with the Ho Chi Minh National Political Academy (HCMPA) and the Policy Project, is training national and provincial level policy leaders to design and implement effective multi-sectoral and evidence-based HIV/AIDS programs and policies. The project aims to build capacity among Vietnamese AIDS experts (including academic, practitioners, policy makers and PLWA) to conduct multi-sectoral AIDS public policy training; to increase recognition of HIV/AIDS as an issue that requires active and bold leadership at the highest levels; to strengthen leadership capacity to design and implement multi-sectoral AIDS programs and policies at national and local levels; to build capacity of faculty and leadership at the Ho Chi Minh National Political Academy to institutionalize the training program at the Academy; and link the training program to effective HIV/AIDS policy in practice at national and local level. Harvard will also evaluate the project's impact on national and provincial-level policy.

Institute for Social Development Studies (ISDS)

Geographic Focus: Quang Ninh and Can Tho provinces
Target Population: Policymakers, local communities

The activities being implemented by ISDS addresses the development, implementation, and testing of a comprehensive stigma reduction program in Vietnam. With the current grant from Pact, ISDS is following up and evaluating the progress in the establishment of the stigma reduction program previously initiated. The activities to be implemented focus on: following up on the anti-stigma IEC programs of Central Committee for Ideology and Culture (CCIC) at central and local levels; completing, evaluating, and publicize the anti-stigma activities implemented at the commune level; gathering and providing lessons learned from the project activities; enhancing provincial level anti-stigma training capacity; developing recommendations for an anti-stigma model replicable at the grassroots level; and expanding application of the model. The collaboration between ISDS and ICRW, with technical assistance provided by ICRW, will result in the strengthened capacity of ISDS.

International Center for Research on Women

Geographic Focus : Nationwide; Quang Ninh and Can Tho provinces
Target Population : ISDS staff

ICRW's program is focusing on providing ISDS and their partners with high-quality, reliable and consistent technical assistance in the area of HIV-stigma, targeted program evaluation and scaling up of activities to support the overall objective of the project which is to contribute to the prevention of HIV in Vietnam, improve the lives of people living with HIV and ensure a continuum of care, through the reduction of stigma. The activities being implemented by ICRW are aimed at reducing stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV, at building capacity for the Central Committee for Ideology and Culture (CCIC) at the central and local levels in anti-stigma IEC programs and to evaluate the commune-level intervention to provide lessons and a model for scaling up stigma reduction.

Medecins du Monde France(MdM)

Geographic Focus: Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Hanoi
Target Population: People living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), at-risk populations, especially most at-risk populations (MARPS) such as the homeless, injection drug users (IDU), and sex workers

MdM's project aims to improve the quality of life for PLHIV and to contribute to the decrease of HIV/AIDS and STI incidence among the population at risk for HIV transmission in several districts of HCMC and in Hanoi. MdM's approach includes strengthening access to primary health care among PLHIV and their families, increasing access to anonymous and voluntary HIV testing with pre and post counseling (VCT), improving and increasing provision of care and support to patients living with HIV/AIDS through an integrated program with access to ARVs and opportunistic infections prevention and treatment, and referrals, as well as activities aimed at decreasing risk behaviors for HIV transmission among sex workers, injecting drug users and other MARPs population. The ART program that MdM implements covers provision, adherence and follow-up adherence counseling, patient monitoring, and the development of site guidelines for ART management.

Pathfinder International

Geographic Focus: Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Can Tho and An Giang
Target Population: Public and private health sector leaders, public and private sector health care providers

The Pathfinder's project activities are focusing on STI prevention and care and HIV prevention as well as on building the private sector's capacity to effectively contribute to the mitigation of the HIV/AIDS epidemic while enhancing the public sector's capacity to effectively supervise, support and regulate the private sector. In addition Pathfinder is working to develop the capacity of existing professional associations to serve as legitimate representatives of the private sector.

Population Services International (PSI)

Geographic Focus: HCMC, Can Tho, Hai Phong, and Hanoi
Target Population: Young men, MARPs (MSM, FSWs, IDUs)

With Funding from Pact, PSI/Vietnam is launching an integrated behavior change communications (iBCC) campaign promoting safer sexual behaviors among young men. The strategic objective of this program is the promotion of safer sexual behaviors among men aged 18 to 35, with an emphasis on changing sexual norms in Vietnam. Three principles guide the PSI's iBCC approach: disciplined targeting allocates scarce resources to activities that promise the highest impact among those at highest risk; integrated communications involve varying communications channels, each serving to leverage and reinforce the others to motivate behavior change; evidence-based programming involves ongoing analysis, which feeds into continuous program improvement. Program results will be achieved through the implementation of activities guided by an iBCC strategy and supported by two additional and interrelated strategies: the creation of programmatic linkages to ensure a comprehensive approach to HIV prevention in target provinces, and sustainable programming with partner organizations.

A second project that PSI is implementing focuses its activities on filling identified gaps of services, products, and behavior change interventions that MARP require to protect themselves from an increasing threat of new HIV infections. The HIV prevention interventions proposed include integrated communication activities to generate informed demand for VCT services, promotion of safer sexual and injecting behaviors, including increasing uptake of HIV related products (male & female condoms, and water-based lubricants), drug demand reduction and services targeted at MARP. These interventions are customized for each targeted group and closely linked to the iBCC program.

Save the Children

Geographic Focus: Ho Chi Minh City and Quang Ninh provinces
Target Population: Young men (15-24 yrs)

Save the Children's program design draws on the ecological model that promotes work at multiple levels (individual, peer, and community). The program focuses on reducing the spread of HIV among young males by improving their access to quality prevention information and their knowledge, skills and attitudes related to prevention. Using an inter-personal communications curriculum, Save the Children is training peer educators (PEs) to reach-out to their peers where they live, work, and play. To help key gatekeepers support young men to make healthy choices, Save the Children will use community mobilization strategies and dialogue. A part of Save the Children's program activities are focusing on leading a consortium of local organizations in planning and implementing primary drug use prevention programming, targeting at-risk youth both in and out of school, as well as key members of their communities (e.g. parents, teachers, and community leaders).

STI/HIV/AIDS Prevention Center (SHAPC)

Geographic Focus: Hanoi
Target Population: University students
Website: No organization website. More information available at: http://www.unaids.org.vn/local/ngo/shapc_en.pdf

SHAPC is implementing a project to improve knowledge and skills for HIV prevention among university students. The project emphasizes abstinence and faithfulness for the general population of students, while also meeting the HIV prevention needs of those who are sexually active and potentially at risk, by promoting safe sex (addressing the need for condoms as well) and drug use information and awareness. To reach the objective of this program, SHAPC is collaborating with 6 universities in Hanoi: University of Culture, National Economics University, University of Transport and Communication, University of Civil Engineering, Water Resource University and University of Trade Union.

Worldwide Orphans Foundation (WWO)

Geographic Focus: Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City
Target Population: Health care providers, Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC)

WWO supports pediatric HIV/AIDS care and treatment through trainings for health care professionals, as well as through the provision of direct care and treatment services for orphans and vulnerable children living with HIV at two residential centers in Vietnam. In addition, WWO is developing a model initiative to meet the psychosocial and educational needs of children in the treatment program, and to combat stigmatization.