Call for Expression of Interest (EOI) from Individual Consultant/s to develop HIV Position Paper-Treatment as Prevention

Background
Since 1986 when the first HIV case was discovered in Malaysia, HIV has become one of the country’s most serious health and development challenges. Malaysia has a concentrated epidemic among Key Populations with estimated HIV prevalence’s of 16.3% (IBBS 2014) among People Who Inject Drugs (PWID), 8.9% among Men who have sex with Men (MSM), 5.6% among Transgenders (TG) individuals and 7.3% among Female Sex Workers (FSW). At the beginning of the epidemic, HIV mostly spread through sharing of needles among PWID. However, there is a shift towards sexual transmission observed in recent years. Notification of infections through injecting drug use has declined significantly from 60-75% in the 1990s to 11.1% in 2016 while notification through sexual transmission has increased from about 5% in the 1990s to 84.3% in 2016 (MOH 2016). Through sustained efforts by government and non-government agencies, there has been a significant reduction of new cases by almost half from 28.4 cases per 100,000 people in 2002 to 11.0 cases per 100,000 people in 2016 (MOH 2016). The number of People Living with HIV (PLHIV) in 2016 was estimated at 97,586. At the end 2016, about 37%-40% of the estimated number of PLHIV has been enrolled in treatment.
The Ministry of Health (MOH), National Strategic Plan for Ending AIDS(NSPEA) 2016-2030 seeks to address challenges in achieving fast tracking of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2020:

• 90% of PLHIV are tested and know their status,
• 90% of those eligible for anti-retroviral therapy (ART) are enrolled on ART and
• 90% of those on ART have achieved viral load suppression.

The need for efficient engagement in HIV care is more evident than ever because of the expansion of earlier ART initiation and the shift towards ‘Test and Treat’. The Community Based Testing has been implemented in various sites in Malaysia with an aim to identify PLHIV and to effectively link them to HIV treatment programmes.

To improve and expand access to HIV prevention tools and strategies for key affected populations, MAC endeavours to develop position papers that will provide critical analysis of current facts, data and research literature that communicates the current HIV trend and emerging issues.
The Treatment as Prevention position paper will state the values that underpin HIV/AIDS and issues related to it. The objective is to consult on, identify, agree and commit to a set of values that support the HIV prevention, treatment and care programmes in Malaysia.

Objectives
In general, the Position paper will seek to initiate a process to:

1. Leverage the mandate and reach of key stakeholders to engage in the design of the framework that can give support to actions at the state, national and regional levels.
2. Recognise the critical area of concern for action, endorse and build a mechanism to accelerate implementation and systematic follow-up.

Expected Results

• The position paper will be aimed at those with a leadership role in HIV prevention, treatment and care to strengthen the core HIV activities, key actions for an effective response and core principles underlying those actions.
• It also identifies how national partners can scale up ART uptake among key population at the country level.
• Designing and applying the principles of combination prevention systematically and consistently in HIV programme planning to increase HIV programme effectiveness.

The position paper will:

• Use evidence to support the position, such as statistical evidence or dates and events.
• Validate the position with authoritative references or primary source quotations.
• Examine the strengths and weaknesses of the position.
• Evaluate possible solutions and suggest courses of action.

Budget

Consultancy rate is based on qualification and experience. Candidates with strong background in Public Health, HIV/AIDS work, and possess project assessment/evaluation skills are encouraged to apply with proposed budget.

Duration of the Consultant Assignment

A total number of 10 days of engagement. However, the timeline is subject to changes to suit the consultant’s time flexibility no later than 20th March 2018.

Criteria for the Consultant

1. Sound knowledge of the HIV and AIDS epidemic in South East Asia and in Malaysia particularly
2. At least 5 years’ experience working with PLHIV and key populations.
3. Extensive experience in conducting policy implementation review
4. Good communication and writing skills
5. Familiarity working with government and Civil Society Organisations;

MAC encourages members of Partner Organisations and PLHIV to apply.

If interested, please submit an EOI Letter and Curriculum Vitae (CV) on or before 6:00pm on 2 March 2018 to [email protected], cc [email protected]. Only shortlisted candidates will be notified.