A “bright” future for Projet Orange?
27 February 2007
Projet Orange, a community-based antiretroviral treatment pilot project run by Alliance partner Association African Solidarité (AAS), is facing an uncertain future unless new funds are found by the end of this year. Although donors have pledged support, AAS has not yet received a funding commitment.
The project, developed in Burkina Faso by the Alliance in partnership with AAS, provides treatment and adherence support to 150 people living with HIV. It has been funded by the Africa Regional Programme and Aids Fonds/FFL since 2003.
In an attempt to secure new funds and commitment to carry Projet Orange into 2008, AAS and the Alliance held a donor round table at their offices in November.
One objective was to explore the possibility of transferring those currently receiving treatment through the project to the national care and support programme. AAS also presented a new project proposal for Projet Orange in 2008 and beyond.
Mamadou Sacko, UNAIDS Coordinator for Burkina Faso, affirmed the participants’ support for AAS. “We leave this round table feeling confident that the future for AAS will be bright,” he said.
Projet Orange has helped bring AAS to the forefront of Burkina Faso’s civil society response to HIV. AAS has since been recognised as a key player at the national level.
A project evaluation in 2005 highlighted the key role played by community-based organisations in improving treatment access for the most marginalised and vulnerable populations. It also demonstrated that providing adherence support services in a resource-poor context is essential. AAS now wants to scale up the project and ensure its sustainability.
Round table participants included the Alliance’s field programme director Lynette Lowndes, the Permanent Secretary of the National HIV/AIDS Committee of Burkina, USAID, the EU, Sida, UNAIDS and the Belgian Development Cooperation.
