In the Dominican Republic and in Guyana, HIV prevalence rates among key populations are significantly higher than those in the countries’ general population. This disparity highlights the disproportionate vulnerability of populations such as female sex workers (FSW), men who have sex with men (MSM), transgender (TG), migrant and mobile populations to HIV. High HIV prevalence among these key affected populations also suggests the potential for continued spread of the virus. In both the Dominican Republic and Guyana, Advancing Partners & Communities’ (APC) efforts are geared towards contributing to a sustainable reduction in HIV transmission among key populations and an improved quality of life for people living with HIV. By strengthening the technical and organizational capacity of NGOs and community-based organizations through sub-grants, monitoring, and mentoring, APC enables grantees to establish the foundations for increasing the quality of HIV services and reduce stigma and discrimination. APC provides technical and organizational capacity building for USAID-supported NGOs implementing HIV prevention, counseling and testing (HCT) and care and support programming, as well as technical assistance (TA) to the Ministry of Health (MoH).
Photo credit: This child is HIV-positive and has come to the Muranga District Hospital in Kenya for treatment from a USAID-backed program run by the International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs, Columbia University School of Public Health. Photo credit: Casey Kelbaugh, International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs, Columbia University School of Public Health