Key issues: abstinence
Spending requirement presents challenges for allocating prevention funding under the President’s plan for AIDS relief
Abstinence-tied funding restricts effective prevention programming
Authors:
; United States Government Accountability Office (GAO)
Publisher:
Government Accountability Office, US Congress, 2006
This report considers what effects the President’s Plan for AIDS relief (PEPFAR) restrictions on funding, including abstinence-only prevention requirements, have had on country teams’ ability to implement adequate prevention strategies. The report finds that restrictions – that two-thirds of allocated prevention funds be spent on abstinence/faithfulness (AB) activities – have presented serious challenges for country teams. Firstly, two-thirds of country teams reported ambiguities in how to implement the prevention ABC (abstinence, be faithful, use condoms) model in accordance with funding requirements. Secondly, funding restrictions limit teams’ abilities to design and implement prevention programmes that are integrated and responsive to local prevention needs. While some smaller teams were exempt from these restrictions, the report found that remaining teams were required to spend more on AB activities, for the entire programme to achieve funding requirements.
Because the funding restrictions challenge the ability of country teams to allocate prevention resources in a manner consistent with the PEPFAR sexual transmission prevention strategy, GAO recommends that the Secretary of State direct the Global AIDS Coordinator to collect and report information on the effects of the abstinence-until-marriage spending requirement’s on prevention programming. The report also recommends that this information be used to assess whether the requirement should apply only to the HIV/AIDS Initiative Account. [adapted from author]
