Overview

USAID — working through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) — partners with the Government of India to strengthen the national HIV/AIDS program and provide prevention education and care to high-risk populations.  

Building on decades of experience supporting an effective health system in India, USAID is supporting the National AIDS Control Plan (NACP) for prevention, care, and treatment programs for people living with HIV/AIDS.  The combined efforts of USAID,  the Government of India (GOI) and partners resulted in a reduction of new HIV infections by 66 percent since 2000, and today nearly one million people living with AIDS are currently on antiretroviral therapy.  “Targeted interventions based on close collaboration with and empowerment of communities and civil society…helped deliver key life-saving services to the affected population,“  Health Minister J.P. Nadda said in his address to the U.N. General Assembly in June 2016.  

Drawing on global evidence about effective HIV/AIDS care, treatment, and prevention methods, USAID supports the NACP to adopt cost-effective and evidence-based practices. The Government of India supports nearly 80 percent of the total funding for HIV/AIDS programs nationally—an element essential to sustaining this vitally important work. 

USAID/India Programs

The Government’s National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) and PEPFAR share the belief that the first step to ending the epidemic is accurate and timely testing to identify at least 90% of persons living with HIV. USAID’s programs work with NACO to deliver focused prevention, care, and support interventions in select districts with a high burden of HIV, which will have a direct impact on India achieving an AIDS-free generation.

Saving Lives: Across India non-government organizations (NGOs) provide support for high-risk populations, including female sex workers, men who have sex with men, injection drug users, and transgender people.  In addition to raising awareness, the NGOs provide testing, counseling, and referral for treatment.  In eight states, USAID funds technical support units to ensure that efforts of these organizations are in compliance with national standards. These technical support units identify and address service gaps such as individuals who drop out of programs between testing and treatment.   

Smart Investments: To achieve an AIDS-free generation, USAID is targetting efforts to reach and support those populations at greatest risk and most urgently needing services.

Orphans and Vulnerable Children: India has seven million children with at least one parent living with HIV and 1.5 million children orphaned due to HIV.  Using a family-based and child-focused approach, USAID provides support services for HIV/AIDS-affected children by linking them to appropriate services.   

TB/HIV:  In India, tuberculosis (TB) is a leading cause of death in people living with HIV.  Testing all persons living with HIV for TB, and vice versa, is essential to providing appropriate care and treatment.  USAID initiated the first large-scale pilot to diagnose TB among people living with HIV in five states in India, which included a daily treatment regimen for those coinfected with TB and HIV.  This led the national program to pilot daily treatment for all TB patients in 100 districts in India.  USAID is working to ensure all TB patients are tested for HIV, including scaling up HIV/TB coordination mechanisms in priority states.     

Driving Results with Science: USAID supports community-based testing and other innovative measures to improve the impact of prevention, care and treatment for HIV.  For example, USAID partners are testing new online methods of reaching persons at high-risk, or who show signs of HIV.  This includes piloting a computerized, thumbprint record system to protect patient anonymity and permit more accurate tracking and follow-up.  Early results show that patients enrolled in this system have a higher rate of obtaining life-saving treatment.