IFAD strategy paper on HIV/AIDS for East and Southern Africa
Section VI - Building IFAD Capacity to Address HIV/AIDS: A Summary of Potential Activities
A. At Project Level
180. To begin addressing HIV/AIDS at project level and identifying appropriate HIV/AIDS prevention and mitigation activities, it is proposed that each IFAD-supported project organize a one-month consultancy to systematically assess: (a) the impact of the epidemic on the project (and its partners where necessary); (b) how to mainstream HIV/AIDS concerns in core project activities; (c) operational and procedural adjustments needed to address the impact of AIDS on project staff and target groups; and (d) key entry points for the integration of HIV/AIDS in ongoing project interventions. Measures to be taken at project level will depend on the degree of HIV/AIDS prevalence and the level of impact in the project area. Therefore, the choice of tasks will vary from project to project.
The following tasks should be undertaken during the consultancy:
(a) Conduct an internal HIV/AIDS impact assessment to determine: the direct/indirect costs of the epidemic on the project; the level of staff awareness of HIV prevention and AIDS mitigation (who has been reached by IEC campaigns, how and when?); and the mechanisms adopted by the project to cope with staff morbidity and mortality.100
(b) Conduct an assessment of potential project impact on HIV/AIDS to assess whether and how the project could inadvertently exacerbate the spread of HIV and increase the impact of AIDS. Issues to be addressed in such assessments would include some of the following:
- Will the project break up family structures and add to HIV risk?
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Will the project require the displacement of people?
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Will the project increase inequality?
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If new transport routes are created, are there plans to address HIV risk?
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What is the potential impact of HIV/AIDS on cash cropping versus food security?
(c) Conduct a community
HIV/AIDS impact assessment with project target groups using PRA to
identify the level of impact in the project area (using the HIV/AIDS vulnerability
and mitigation matrix), the livelihood-specific vulnerabilities of the
target groups, coping mechanisms, and corresponding prevention and mitigation
priorities that are location- and context-specific.101
(d) Assess the appropriateness of establishing an HIV/AIDS focal point among the project staff (to be selected from among volunteers) and prepare his or her terms of reference, in collaboration with project staff. Explore what training and other incentives can be offered to the HIV/AIDS focal point.
(e) Identify potential NGOs to undertake awareness-raising and capacity-building of project staff on HIV/AIDS, and work on a draft outline of the areas to be covered in training courses.
(f) Explore whether and how the project coordinator or deputy coordinator can be entrusted with the overall responsibility of integrating HIV/AIDS in project operations.
(g) Explore the financial, human resource and organizational requirements that will be needed to establish an integrated AIDS workplace programme.
(h) Prepare a detailed action plan for the integration of HIV/AIDS in the core technical work of the project.
(i) Define monitoring, evaluation and reporting requirements to accompany each proposed activity.
B. At Country Level
181. The following activities are proposed for IFAD-supported projects at country level, to be held at about the same time as or after the activities proposed at project level:
(a) Organize a workshop bringing together all IFAD-supported projects to brainstorm on the relevance of HIV/AIDS for projects supported by the Fund. The aim of the workshop should be to: (a) provide topical technical information on the status of HIV/AIDS in the country and, where possible, in project areas; (b) discuss the relevance of the epidemic for IFAD-supported projects (and identify common problems resulting from the impact of HIV/AIDS, explore ways of reaching households affected by HIV/AIDS, share information on ongoing prevention and mitigation activities and experiences); and (c) propose practical steps that address the implications of the epidemic for project work.102
(b) Set up a networking mechanism among projects to ensure easy exchange of information and experience with HIV/AIDS initiatives (including bottlenecks, gaps and, eventually, lessons learned and best practices); and organize project exchange visits to stimulate interaction and dialogue among project staff. Depending on the country and the IFAD project portfolio in that country, it may be appropriate to have one project lead the process of integrating HIV/AIDS. In Uganda, for instance, UWESO would have a clear lead role in assisting other projects in identifying entry points for HIV/AIDS activities.
C. At Headquarters Level
182. The following initiatives are proposed at Headquarters level to initiate a programme of activities on HIV/AIDS and facilitate the integration of HIV/AIDS concerns within IFAD:
(a) Awareness-raising of IFAD headquarters staff of the links between HIV/AIDS and the technical areas of the Fund’s work.
(b) Capacity development to build HIV/AIDS in project design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation (M&E) and particularly in project documents, missions, baseline surveys, etc. Explore with staff whether and how the project design process needs to change to accommodate the conditions being created by HIV/AIDS.
(c) Awareness-raising of staff of cooperating institutions (UNOPS, the African Development Bank and the World Bank) and of cofinancing partners to the developmental effects of HIV/AIDS on IFAD-supported projects;
(d) Establishment of a database on HIV/AIDS and rural development to facilitate access by IFAD staff, and particularly CPMs and consultants, to essential information on HIV/AIDS, resource persons for IFAD missions, and potential partners. Essential information that can be made easily available to IFAD staff would include:
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adult HIV/AIDS prevalence rates by district (where available) to enable CPMs to identify at a glance whether HIV/AIDS is a serious problem in current or planned IFAD-supported project areas;
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UNAIDS and the Futures Group International’s HIV/AIDS economic impact profiles by country and by sector for information on the effects of the epidemic on agriculture and rural development, industry and other key economic sectors, including existing studies in each sector;
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national consultants and NGOs with expertise on HIV prevention, AIDS mitigation, etc.;
(e) Incorporation of HIV/AIDS concerns in the IFAD website, with up-to-date information on IFAD’s current and planned activities on HIV/AIDS, case studies of successful initiatives and related IFAD-supported project reports from the field.
100/ For more information on Internal HIV/AIDS Impact Assessments, see Topouzis, 2001.
101/ For further information on Community HIV/AIDS Impact Assessments, see ibid.
102/ Similar exercises have been held by GTZ for its projects in Kenya, See Hemrich, 1998.
