Guyana, the third smallest country in South America, confronts a growing HIV/AIDS epidemic. With an estimated 3-5 percent of the adult population, already HIV positive, Guyana has the second highest number of HIV cases in the region. MSH is partnering on the Guyana HIV/AIDS Reduction and Prevention Project (GHARP), which is focusing on prevention efforts to lessen the impact of the epidemic, while extending services to those already affected by HIV/AIDS.

Guyana, identified as one of the fifteen priority countries by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), is being supported by USAID. In the next five years, the GHARP project hopes to reach the following goals:

• Treating 2000 HIV-positive persons
• Preventing 15,000 new infections
• Providing care and support services for up to 9,000 people with an emphasis on orphans and vulnerable people

As part of the GHARP project, MSH will assist the government of Guyana to provide HIV/AIDS care and treatment. By providing technical assistance to support the scale-up services, MSH will be working to:

• plan and execute multisectoral collaboration at the central and regional level
• build management and leadership skills at all levels
• respond to the human resource crisis
• support systems development for pharmaceutical management
• enhance the health management information system
• build the capacity of local NGOs that are the frontline of service delivery

MSH is partnering on GHARP with Family Health International (FHI), Cicatelli Associates Incorporated (CAI), and Howard Delafield International (HDI).