EXAMPLES OF INNOVATIVE FUNDING AN INTEGRATED APPROACH
TIDES AFRICA FUND Co-developed with the Hewlett Foundation in August 2007, the Africa Family Planning and HIV Integration Fund, or the Tides Africa Fund, seeks to leverage HIV/AIDS funding to support the family planning and reproductive health fields in sub-Saharan Africa that are serving the same populations as the HIV/AIDS providers. The goal of the Fund is to support well-designed existing programs with the ability to measure and share program outcomes of integrated program models, and thus, contribute to the scientific legitimacy of the integration approach. In alignment with Tides Africa Fund’s evidencebased model, selected organizations were required to have existing HIV/AIDS programs and at least solid integration plans, as well as the ability to provide quantitative data on the benefits and constraints of their integration model. In addition, preference was given to those organizations with on-site counseling facilities or peer-led outreach programs. During the first phase of the project (August 2008), the fund awarded grants totaling more than $1.3 million to organizations in six different countries, including: Center for Infectious Disease Research (CIDRZ), Zambia; Family AIDS Care and Education Services (FACES), Kenya; Family Health International (FHI), Tanzania; Infectious Disease Institute (IDI), Uganda; IntraHealth International, Rwanda; and Pathfinder International, Mozambique. Originally the Tides Africa Fund’s strategy was designed to target and influence the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to include stronger linkages between HIV/AIDS and reproductive health services. However, recent changes announced by the Obama Administration’s Global Health Initiative (GHI) to prioritize the integration of the previously separate silos of HIV/AIDS, family planning and maternal and child health called for
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a new approach. The fund’s focus shifted towards providing more information on policy change to its grantee partners; holding discussions on broader integration to leverage and support their current work focused on the GHI and Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); and finally, to increase the visibility and capacity of their grantee partners to take full advantage of the GHI’s new focus on country-led programs. To achieve its goals, Tides Africa Fund brought grantee-partners together as a cohort to develop goals and outcomes for the fund, as well as to share essential information and best practices between organizations. Currently at the sixmonth mark of phase II, the fund is focused on supporting the capacity and development of its grantee partners. Based on the cohort’s recommendations, this includes increased resource development and supporting grantee information-sharing on policy changes and best practices. The fund also supports the cohort to meet on a quarterly basis by phone or in-person, as well as to create a quarterly newsletter to keep grantee partners engaged in the current state of integration. This collaborative approach has yielded additional benefits, with grantee partners recognizing their individual strengths and offering support to other countries. For example, IDI in Uganda provides assistance with fundraising; IntraHealth International in Rwanda helps the grantees navigate working with ministries of health; and FHI in Tanzania shares their skills in curriculum development and networking. The next phase of the fund will include expanding to grantees from Ethiopia, South Africa and Botswana. Additionally, the fund will work on analyzing and translating its emerging qualitative and quantitative data and then sharing this information with other funders and leaders to promote investments for in-country leadership and integration models.
Funders Concerned about aids