[tab: Background]

The International HIV/AIDS Alliance (Alliance) is an international non-governmental organisation with its secretariat based in the United Kingdom that supports community action on HIV and AIDS in more than 30 developing countries across four continents. Malaysian AIDS Council (MAC) became an Alliance Linking Organisation in November 2009. This partnership is a valuable resource for MAC in its efforts to improve the delivery of services to key affected populations nationwide in terms of coverage and quality.

Linking Organisations are entitled to a wide range of benefits, including access to professional training, technical support and information; access to Alliance know-how; networking and development; enhanced organisational performance; and solidarity and financial support.

[tab: Community Action on Harm Reduction]

Community Action on Harm Reduction (CAHR) is an ambitious project that aims to expand harm reduction services to more than 180,000 people who use drugs, their partners and children in five countries, i.e. China, India, Indonesia, Kenya, and Malaysia.

The programmes are being implemented by a consortium of Alliance Linking Organisations:

  1. Alliance China
  2. International HIV/AIDS Alliance in India
  3. Rumah Cemara Indonesia
  4. KANCO, Kenya
  5. Malaysian AIDS Council

The main focus will be on providing HIV and harm reduction services to people who use drugs and their families in the five countries.  The project will involve people who use drugs in the design and delivery of services, and develop advocacy plans to advance the human rights of people who use drugs. There is a strong focus on building the local capacity of community based organisations and sharing knowledge about best practices.

The project aims to demonstrate in each country how it is possible to reach more people by capitalising on both the infrastructure and the evidence-based approaches of the national AIDS response, in order to scale up harm reduction programmes quickly.

CAHR is being led by the the Alliance which has a strong track record around working with people who use drugs, their families and households to improve health.

CAHR is made possible through a grant by the Dutch government. The project will draw upon the experience in the Netherlands itself, where harm reduction has proven to be a successful and cost-effective approach to HIV/AIDS prevention and where infections (in January 2008) remained at 0.2% of the adult population, with just 4% attributed to unsafe drug injecting practices.

[tab: CAHR Project]

MAC – Alliance CAHR Enterprising Community Project

Malaysian AIDS Council (MAC) aims to address the socio-economic determinants of health for women who face multiple layers of stigma and discrimination focusing on female injecting drug users, female sex workers and their families in Kelantan, by forming a sustainable community enterprise through the International HIV/AIDS Alliance Community Action for Harm Reduction (CAHR) programme.

This Enterprising Community Project will be made possible through a strategic public private partnership with relevant partner/partners of MAC.

The objective of the project is to reduce unemployment among 250 women in rural and semi-urban resource-poor settings through training and supporting them to start small sustainable household income generating activities.

A call for proposals has been shared with civil society organisations alike to seek onsite Implementing Partners to propose and provide appropriate services for the project beneficiaries. The project is planned for implementation in the second half of the year 2012.

For more information about the CAHR programme, please contact Ms Jenithaa at [email protected]