India HIV/AIDS Alliance with its experience in care & support programming, established a partnership in Manipur with SASO to implement a home-based care & support programme for injecting drug users (IDUs) and people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV) in 2004. The project was supported through the International HIV/AIDS Alliance.

In 2006, SASO became part of another programme addressing the growing feminisation of HIV across the country and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs of women. This brought attention to the distinct vulnerabilities that women face, and consequently, this programme expanded to reach female injecting drug users (FIDU) in Imphal. This programme was the first of its kind in India and was instrumental in highlighting the impact of injecting drug use on women.

Alliance India helped to establish a night shelter in 2009 to provide a safe space for the FIDUs at night as they faced violence and sexual abuse. The learning from this project has contributed to Alliance India’s Chanura Kol programme with Female Injecting Drug Users.

Alliance India in partnership with Child Survival India developed and implemented a community-based programme integrating sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and HIV/AIDS information and services to increase access for vulnerable groups of women, adolescent girls, young people and marginalised populations like sex workers and PLHIV. The project was supported by the Hewlett Foundation.

The programme was implemented in the relocated slum community of Holumbi Kalan in northwest Delhi. The area has a large migrant population with low levels of awareness on HIV, reproductive health and family planning, and challenged by unemployment, early marriage, domestic violence, and discrimination against the girl child. The programme had interventions to address risky behaviours that included unsafe sex with multiple partners, sharing needles, injecting drug use, and low usage of condoms. Through a community-centred model, the programme made a host of SRH and HIV/AIDS services accessible and available to the community, reducing risky behaviour among vulnerable groups and helping PLHIV make safe and fulfilling sexual and reproductive health choices.

START AP project was launched in 2007. It built on the strengths of Alliance India’s HIV prevention programme, supported through Avahān and in partnership with Andhra Pradesh State AIDS control Society (APSACS). The project was designed to fill some of the gaps between prevention, care, support and treatment services. It was financed with funding from the International HIV/AIDS Alliance.

START AP supported provision of antiretroviral treatment (ART) to all those who need it for three years with a special focus on key populations and addressing their access-related issues. The project’s comprehensive approach helped to create a conducive environment at both ends of the supply and demand spectrum. The supported district hospital and the ART centre developed the capacity and infrastructure to provide services, and the outreach programme mobilised key population members while creating demand for services.

FPP was a global programme implemented in Ecuador, India and Cambodia with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In India, it operated in Andhra Pradesh. FPP’s main aim was to strengthen HIV prevention efforts with key populations at risk. It was based on two principles designed to increase the effectiveness of intervention strategies:

Complementing this programme was the Avāhan India AIDS Initiative which Alliance India has implemented in Andhra Pradesh since 2003.

Supported through the DFID Challenge Fund, Alliance India initiated a one-year programme that used community-driven approaches to address the feminisation of HIV/AIDS in India. The programme reached out to women living with HIV, their families and communities. It also engaged with women who were highly vulnerable to HIV. The project underscored the importance of male involvement in promoting gender equity and health seeking behaviours.

This SRH and HIV integration programme was implemented across six states (Tamilnadu, Manipur, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Punjab and Orissa) in 14 districts and involved partnerships with 17 implementing NGOs. In keeping with the Alliance’s approach, the programme developed community-centred approaches to meet the SRH and HIV/AIDS-related needs of women in low-income settings. It was successful in placing women’s needs and rights at the centre of all activities through community sensitisation and mobilisation efforts. It was also instrumental in building capacity of NGOs and community members, especially women, to undertake programme activities and thus contribute to longer-term sustainability.

HCBCS was established with Alliance Linking Organisations PWDS, VMM and MAMTA and their 37 implementing NGOs in Tamilnadu , Andhra Pradesh and Delhi with support from the Abbott Fund Step Forward Programme. The overarching goal of this programme was to reduce stigma and discrimination through community mobilisation strategies. It aimed to improve the quality of life of people living with HIV and families and children affected by AIDS.

Of the 37 NGOs, the majority had not worked on HIV/AIDS previously. This programme was instrumental in mainstreaming HIV/AIDS into their broader development activities and building local capacities. By working in partnership with local and national mechanisms, Alliance India and its Linking Organisations were able to identify and respond to strategic gaps in the national response to provide care & support for children affected by the epidemic. Additionally, linkages with government as well as local and state level advocacy efforts placed care and support firmly on the agenda of stakeholders.

HCBCS was the first HIV-focussed programme for orphans and other vulnerable children in India, and it formed the basis of the CHAHA programme funded by the Global Fund.