New Health Policy analysis ‘Protecting Africa's children from extreme risk: a runway of sustainability for PEPFAR programmes’ published in The Lancet, estimates that 1 million children could become infected with HIV, nearly half a million could die from AIDS by 2030, and 2.8 million children could experience orphanhood in the region without consistent, stable funding for US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) programmes.
The authors say their analysis presents strong evidence that funding PEPFAR programmes for at least five more years is critically important to prevent childhood illness, death, and orphanhood, maintain progress in efforts to prevent new HIV infections worldwide, and uphold the USA’s position as a leader in global health diplomacy.  Â
Co-lead author Professor Lucie Cluver said: 'The future of PEPFAR programmes hang in the balance. Losing stable, long-term support for PEPFAR programmes sets global progress to end HIV/AIDS back to the dark ages of the epidemic, especially for children and adolescents.'
'A sudden withdrawal of PEPFAR programmes, especially in the absence of a long term strategy to replace them, could lead to a resurgence of HIV infections and preventable deaths, and a dramatic rise in the number of children orphaned by AIDS in the coming years – a setback that could erode two decades of progress.'Â
'Continued investments in PEPFAR programmes combined with progressive growth in African co-financing can create a sustainable transition for country-led ownership of HIV programmes and preserve the legacy of PEPFAR’s lifesaving work.'
Read the analysis in full in The Lancet
Find out more on the University of Oxford website
