Dear Colleagues

Learning from Each Other: Technical Assistance and Monitoring and Evaluation
Workshop for the South Asia Collaborative Fund for HIV Treatment Preparedness.
Chennai, India: 25 - 29 April 2006

From 25 - 29 April 2006, nearly forty community advocates from India,
Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal gathered in Chennai for a technical
assistance and monitoring and evaluation workshop as part of the South Asia
Collaborative Fund for HIV Treatment Preparedness.

Workshop participants were members of the Regional Advisory Committee (RAC) for
the International Treatment Preparedness Coalition (ITPC) and the Collaborative
Fund, and project managers and representatives from the 21 projects who received
small grants from USD 8,000 - 20,000 as part of first round grants for the Fund.

The focus of the workshop was on sharing lessons learned between the grantees
and bringing technical assistance to grantees in the form of sessions on topics
such as monitoring and evaluation. Members of the RAC also spent a day planning
for the 2nd round of grants.

The logistics of the meeting were organized by the Indian Network of PLWHA (
INP+). Funding for the meeting was through the Collaborative Fund as
administered by Tides Foundation.

The three day program included:

o An overview of the status of treatments access in the four participating South
Asian countries

o Presentations on the funded projects

o Sessions on developing strategic plans on treatments advocacy,
human rights, and monitoring and evaluation.

o Panel discussions on producing treatments literacy materials and
access to treatment for marginalized groups.

o An update on ARVs and co-infections

While individual projects are doing positive work in terms of reducing stigma
and discrimination, building capacity of PLWHA groups, and working with
healthcare providers to improve counseling and treatments education, none of the
countries has widespread treatments access.

At the International Treatment Preparedness Summit in Capetown in March 2003, a
report was given on the state of treatments access in South Asia, where only a
handful of individuals were receiving treatment.

There were no CD4 testing facilities at the time and only a few
voluntary testing and counseling centres throughout the entire region.

Three years later, there has been a lot of change - but still not
enough! Representatives from each of the four countries estimated that:

*In Nepal, there are now over fifty VCT centres with over 500
people now on ARVs, about 400 through the government, and 100 - 150
through NGOs.

* In India, as of February 2006, there are 26231 PLWHA on
treatment supported through NACO ART Supported Centres, 766 in State ART
Supported Centres, 3699 in NGO supported ART centres, 2327 in Sectoral supported
centres, and 2399 in Private centres. The total is: 35,422

* In Pakistan, currently 109 persons are on treatment, mostly
through government hospitals

* In Bangladesh there are five VCT centres, and two NGOs are
providing ARVs to about 50 people.

* In each country, there is a huge gap between what is being
provided and what is being needed (i.e. the estimated need in India as of May
2005 was 500,000)

* There is a huge discrepancy in each case between government
estimates and WHO estimates of numbers of PLWHA.

Other key treatments issues are the lack of second line regimens and
pediatric doses, and the high costs of tests. The full report from the workshop
is available at:

www.afao.org.au <http://www.afao.org.au/>

Currently, there is a link on the righthand side of the front page.
The more specific location of the report is:

http://www.afao.org.au/view_articles.asp?pxa=ve&pxs=102&pxsc=124&id=297#
chennai06

The 2nd round of funding in South Asia will be delayed until further
notice. However, a call for submissions for applications to the South
Asian Collaborative Fund will be distributed when the process begins. Grants
are available only to groups working in South Asia on treatment access issues.

Enquiries about the Collaborative Fund in South Asia should go to Loon Gangte,
regional coordinator, at loon_gangte@....


"Andy Quan"
e-mail: <aquan@...>