Guyana

Office Staff

  • Lisa Thompson, Chief of Party
  • Tomaisha Hendricks, Prevention Officer
  • Nicholas Persaud, Stigma & Gender Officer
  • Dr. Ruth Jacobs, Care & Support Officer
  • Tonia Newton, Finance Manager
  • Dionne Thompson, Grant Accountant
  • Joel De Mendonca, Strategic Information Intern
  • Tzaddi Frank, Administrative Officer
  • Robert Whyte, Driver
  • Dale De Mendonca, Driver
  • Shamar Wilson, Social Media Intern
  • Alessandra Hereman, Key Populations Intern

Contact Information

Advancing Partners & Communities - Guyana
Lot 6 Oleander Avenue
Belair Park, Georgetown
231-1123-4 & 226-4785

Goals of APC/Guyana

The goals for APC in Guyana is to provide technical assistance for local NGOs/FBOs/CBOs implementing activities that are evidence-based, cost-effective and efficiently designed to reduce transmission and impact of HIV through an integrated community response and in support of the MOH response to HIV in Guyana. In Guyana, APC supports 11 NGOs across eight of the 10 administrative regions: Artistes in Direct Support, Agape Network, Comforting Hearts, the FACT Group, G-Plus, Hope for All, Hope Foundation, Lifeline Counselling, Linden Care, United Bricklayers and Youth Challenge Guyana.

Screenshot of the PSAs

APC/Guyana, with technical assistance from JSI, created four HIV-related animated public service announcements (PSA) especially for a Guyanese audience. Watch the videos »

Office Objectives

  1. Improve the operational framework for local NGOs to reach key affected populations and provide services
  2. Improve the efficiency of service delivery to reduce unit costs
  3. Strengthen the partnership between NGOs and the Government to expand services with the same amount of investment and ensure the viability of the NGOs’ role in the national HIV response
  4. Explore initiatives to ensure sustainability of NGO programming based on best practices

Primary Activities

APC provides technical assistance to improve the structures and operation framework of grantee, enhance efficiency of service delivery and strengthen partnerships among all stake holders. APC’s scope of activities focuses on the development and implementation of guidelines and standard operating procedures for Prevention of Sexually Transmitted Infections, HIV Testing and Counseling (HTC), Home-Based Care (HBC), Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) and Positive Health and Dignity Prevention for person living with HIV (PHDP) programmes and financial management system coupled with support to national priorities such as mental health, mobile health services, stigma, discrimination and gender-based violence and bidirectional referrals.

Health Areas

Photo of Sally and Juanita (click to watch video)
Sally Rajigadoo (left), a beneficiary of services provided by United Brick Layers, stands with Juanita Burrows, UBL's Founder and Director, at their office in New Amsterdam, Guyana. Watch a video or view a photo gallery on the high impact and value of investing in NGOs in Guyana. Photo Credit: Joshua Yospyn.

HIV Prevention -key affected Populations (KAPs)*

  • Prevention of Sexually Transmitted HIV infections
  • HIV Testing and Counseling (HTC)
  • Positive Health, Dignity and Prevention for people living with HIV

Care and Support

  • Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC)
  • Adult Care and Support

Specific Crosscutting Areas

  • Stigma and Discrimination (S&D) Reduction
  • Promotion of Gender Equity & Reduction of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence
  • Private sector engagement

KAPs are individuals affected by HIV and AIDS or at risk of being infected by the disease such as sex workers, men who have sex with men, transgender persons, and other vulnerable populations (clients of sex workers, miners, loggers, and populations adjacent to mining and logging communities).

Videos

In a new video and infographic (PDF, 2.7 MB), NCC underscores the high impact of NGOs in the communities and the value of investing in NGOs. NCC currently operates through the three-year USAID-funded Guyana Civil Society Leadership project within the Volunteer Youth Corps, which ends in 2018. Learn more at nccgy.org. "Helping NGOs Support Guyana’s National Agenda for Health and Social Issues" is available on APC's Vimeo account or by using the players below.

(Extended Version)

Photos from Guyana


Guyana-Specific Resources

The Expansion of Holistic and Integrated HIV Services in Guyana
March 2013 | Report

USAID’s Guyana HIV/AIDS Reduction and Prevention Project, PHASE TWO (GHARP II) refined and implemented interventions introduced in GHARP I and actively involved stakeholders, partners, and beneficiaries in tailoring these interventions to the Guyanese context and in building local capacity toward an improved national response to HIV. The project’s technical spectrum included HIV prevention, care and support, counseling and testing, and health systems strengthening.

Guyana Operational Plan Report FY 2012
October 2012 | Report

This report outlines the work Guyana and PEPFAR have been doing to combat HIV/AIDS including developing strategies, timelines, and benchmarks to transition activities to the Government of Guyana.

USAID-GHARP II Annual Report : October 2010-September 2011
January 2012 | Report

This annual report provides an overview of the project’s work in Guyana including assessing and reducing the stigma and discrimination met by PLHIV and members of groups practicing risky behaviors, partnering with MOH to successfully reduce the transmission of HIV in Guyana, and continuing to expand the condom transition plan.

USAID Annual Report 2011
January 2012 | Report

After years of partnering with the Ministry of Health to reduce the transmission of HIV in Guyana, prevalence remains high in the hardest to reach most at risk populations. To address this, USAID/GHARP II looked for new methodologies and approaches that could be employed to reach people with prevention information and encourage them to access HIV testing and other services. In 2011, GHARP II worked with several NGOs to pilot new approaches, including social networking and reaching popular opinion leaders. During the end of the year, preparations began for an assessment among sex workers to provide information on the use of condoms and barriers that can inform behavior change approaches.

The Guyana HIV/AIDS Reduction and Prevention Project 2004-09
May 2009 | Report

This report outlines the major activities and achievements of the Guyana HIV/AIDS Reduction and Prevention (GHARP) Project (2004-09). The report includes a preface by Guyana's Minister of Health and chapters that address what GHARP did to ensure reliable strategic information and health information systems, build organizational and institutional capacity, and engage the private sector in the response; provide structured behavior change programs for groups most at risk, disseminate condoms to them, and improve and increase access to voluntary counseling and HIV testing; strengthen and increase access to services that prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV; and mitigate the impact of HIV/AIDS on adults and children.

News from Guyana

2014

Supporting Social Change to Curb Violence and Eliminate HIV in Guyana
June 24, 2014 | Blog

Anne Stangl, a senior behavioral scientist at the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW), discusses the ICRW’s goal to help strengthen the capacity of local organizations in Guyana to provide HIV prevention, care and treatment services to key populations.

Advancing Partners and Communities project launches campaign in Guyana
May 27, 2014 | Press Release

This press release announces that APC partnered with the Guyana Business Coalition against HIV and AIDS (GBCHA) to launch a campaign to expand and strengthen collaboration between the local business sector and NGOs.

NGOs enlisting more businesses in HIV fight
May 26, 2014 | Article

APC and the Guyana Business Coalition against HIV and AIDS (GBCHA), launched a campaign to expand and strengthen collaboration between the local business sector and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) responding to HIV and AIDS.

Campaign to Strengthen Partnership between Business and NGO Sectors Launched
May 22, 2014 | Article

APC and the Guyana Business Coalition against HIV and AIDS (GBCHA) launched a campaign to expand and strengthen collaboration between Guyana's business sector and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) responding to HIV and AIDS in May 2014.

New campaign being launched against HIV/AIDS
May 21, 2014 | Article

APC, in collaboration with the Guyana Business Coalition against HIV and AIDS (GBCHA), will launch a campaign to expand and strengthen collaboration between Guyana’s business sector and NGOs responding to HIV/AIDS.