Cambodian prevention and care programme displays innovation, says report

18 December 2006

As the face of AIDS changes in Cambodia, so too must the design, management and performance of prevention and care programming. This was one of the main themes to come out of a favourable review of the Integrated Prevention and Care (ICP) programme – the largest programme of the Khmer HIV/AIDS NGO Alliance (KHANA), the Alliance linking organisation in Cambodia.

A report is now available of this August 2006 review, which examined programme performance, management and design, with the overall objective of providing recommendations for improvement in the ICP programme. It found that the ICP programme, along with its host KHANA, “has displayed innovation, developed capacity where none before existed, [and] delivered scale-up of programming”.

Despite this, the report urges that KHANA and ICP “should not rest on its achievements to date” and should adapt to a changing epidemic in Cambodia, where prevalence is reducing and access to antiretrovirals increasing, by continuing community support for treatment and care, implementing focused prevention and expanding impact mitigation work.

KHANA’s ICP programme started as a home-based care programme, but in recent years has expanded to include:

  • facilitating access to care and treatment
  • providing socio-economic support to people with HIV, orphans and vulnerable children, and their families
  • improving the capacity of governmental partners and people with HIV
  • reducing the stigma and discrimination faced by people with HIV and orphans and vulnerable children.

The review’s findings included:

  • ICP improves the quality of life of people with HIV and orphans and vulnerable children. It reduces vulnerability and mitigates impact. It increases access to care and support, reduces stigma and discrimination and increases capacity
  • KHANA has fulfilled the terms of its contract with ICP donors, with targets generally met or exceeded
  • ICP should continue and grow
  • new funds will be needed to meet the needs of the growing number of orphans and vulnerable children, and to increase the programme’s impact mitigation work
  • KHANA should further intensify its focused prevention work
  • KHANA should broaden its impact mitigation work, especially around increasing the household income of people with HIV, and increasing school enrollment of orphans and vulnerable children.

The review recommendations will be used during programme implementation with renewed financial support from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and the US Agency for International Development.