HIV/AIDS Activities by Region

Australia is implementing the following regional programs to reduce the incidence and transmission of HIV.

Africa Regional

By far the worst affected region, there are 22.5 million people living with HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. There were an estimated 1.7 million new infections in 2007, and 76% of all AIDS-related deaths in 2007 occurred in the region. UNAIDS estimated that in eight Southern Afrian countries, adult HIV prevalence exceeded 15% in 2005.

Australian Partnerships with African Communities (APAC)

Contribution: $30 million
Duration: 2004-2009

The AusAID Africa program provides HIV/AIDS assistance primarily through the APAC NGO program, which supports Australian NGOs to work with partners in recipient countries to conduct community-based projects. Countries of focus include Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

This project has the following goals: awareness raising, education and prevention efforts; voluntary, confidential and relevant counselling; community/family-based care and support programs for people affected by HIV/AIDS; community-based orphan care programs; economic and social development activities which are HIV/AIDS focused; institutional building activities; and ethic, political, legal and civil liberty efforts to protect the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS.

Asia Regional Program

The HIV epidemic continues to expand rapidly in Asia, with nearly 440 000 new infections in 2007. Injecting drug use remains a key driver of the epidemic across Asia.

Countries such as Burma, Cambodia and Thailand have high HIV infection rate while other countries such as Vietnam and several provinces in southern and western China are experiencing rapidly expanding epidemics which require a swift and comprehensive prevention response.

Asia Regional HIV/AIDS Project (ARHP)

Contribution: $15.8 million
Duration: 2002-2007

ARHP aims to strengthen the capacity of both the health and public security sectors of governments to reduce transmission of HIV among injecting drug users (IDU). ARHP plays a key role in developing a regional response to the epidemic amongst IDU through advocacy and establishing strategic and innovative links between the health and security sectors. ARHP is focusing on four sites: Burma, Vietnam and Yunnan and Guangxi provinces in southern China.

For further information see Asia Regional HIV/AIDS Project website [external website]

HIV/AIDS Asia Regional Program (HAARP)

Contribution: $59 million
Duration: 2007-2015

HAARP is an important element in Australia's response to the growing HIV problem in the East Asia region. Commenced in July 2007, HAARP will continue Australia's contributions to reducing HIV-related harm associated with injecting drug use in China, Burma and Vietnam, and will expand to include Laos, Cambodia and the Philippines. There will be two sets of expected outcomes, one set at regional level and the other at country level. For further information see the project outline for HAARP [PDF 650KB].

Pacific Regional Program

The major factors influencing transmission of HIV in the Pacific region include a youthful mobile population; high rates of sexually transmitted infections; and low rates of condom use. Gender issues underlie risk and vulnerability.

Despite this, the epidemic has spread slowly in the Pacific (excluding Papua New Guinea) to a cumulative total of 1077 reported HIV cases in 2005.

By 2005 there were 271 reported deaths from AIDS. Rates of infection vary widely between Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) with French Polynesia, Guam and New Caledonia experiencing significant epidemics. Fiji, Kiribati, Tuvalu have recently reported increases in HIV rates, whilst other countries still report low infection levels.

Although the number of reported cases appears low they represent a serious concern for three reasons: figures, including those given above, are likely to represent significant underreporting, as there is generally poor infection surveillance in Melanesia; even though countries such as the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu have reporting of low infection rates, all the preconditions for HIV are present; and thirdly, within the small populations of the PICTs, these numbers translate into relatively high HIV rates.

Pacific Regional HIV /AIDS Project

Contribution: $12.5 million
Duration: 2003-2008

This project aims to strengthen the capacity of PICT governments, NGOs and communities to develop an effective and sustainable multi-sectoral response to HIV/AIDS.

Component one of this project is a Franco/Australian initiative and is managed by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community. It involves regional surveillance, behaviour change communication and the development of a Pacific Regional HIV/AIDS Strategy and Regional Strategy Implementation Plan (RSIP). The Strategy and implementation plan were endorsed by Leaders at the Pacific Islands Forum in 2005.

The RSIP provides a framework for regional organisations, multilaterals and donors to mobilise and re-allocate funds to priority areas and the Asia Development Bank (ADB) has provided $8m funding towards regional activities identified in the Plan. The ADB funding will strengthen surveillance, support a regional condom social marketing program, support behaviour change communication activities, increase the number of sexual health clinics, and support targeted interventions for vulnerable populations.

Components two and three focus on improving national HIV responses in 14 independent Pacific Island countries through building capacity for situational analysis and review, planning, management and monitoring of HIV/AIDS strategies; and building the community response to HIV/AIDS through a Grants Scheme.

For further information see these partner project websites:

Regional South Asia Program

HIV/AIDS is a major issue for countries in the South Asia region. While the incidence and characteristics of each epidemic vary, as does the capacity of countries to respond, Australia has developed a response that recognises that this is a regional issue.

Regional South Asia HIV/AIDS Project

Contribution: $9.5 million
Duration: 2007-2012

This project aims to strengthen the capacities of national governments and civil society organisations to mount a comprehensive and effective response to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS amongst injecting drug users in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The mechanisms used include training; exchange of ideas and knowledge-sharing; establishment of demonstration sites as resource institutions; and initiating the establishment of model quality interventions which could be scaled-up.

The United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Regional Office for South Asia is implementing this project.

See United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime [external website]

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2007