Monitoring, Managing, and Expanding Coverage of High Risk Groups in Central Asia HIV Prevention Programs

Issues: Low Coverage among high risk groups & an unmet need for systems to track coverage. Programs must reach high coverage of vulnerable groups to reverse the spread of HIV. In Central Asia, programs only reach a small percentage of risk populations. Few HIV prevention programs have M&E systems to track individuals reached. Programs do not share data on their reach, making it impossible to estimate coverage. While donors, governments, and NGOs agree on the urgency of reaching scale and the need for a unified M&E system, no programs provide on-going M&E support and tools to achieve this. Description: Population Services International has been providing technical support to organizations serving the needs vulnerable groups in Central Asia to establish and use monitoring systems that allows them to track individuals contacted. PSI designed a database system and anonymous unique code so programs can calculate the reach of target groups by HIV prevention programs. By 2005, many HIV prevention programs are using the systems in Central Asia. USAID, DFID, Global Fund, governments, UN agencies, and other international organizations have begun to use and recognize the system as the regional standard. Recommendations: The presentation will discuss the need for improved M&E systems for HIV prevention in the developing world, using Central Asia as an example. When programs use a single monitoring system, it becomes possible to track and boost coverage levels.