Country Situation Analysis

UN Support to the National Response

Contacts

UNAIDS Global Report 2006 Data

The National AIDS Commission (led by a multisectoral Board of Commissioners) coordinates the national response assisted by a secretariat of over 70 mostly professional staff. Other coordination structures include: (a) Principal Secretaries of the HIV and AIDS committee; (b) Multisectoral District AIDS Committees; (c) Civil Society Forums for International and Local organizations; (d) Umbrella Organizations for community-based organizations and small nongovernmental organizations at District level; (e) Interfaith Umbrella Organizations; (f) Country Coordination Mechanism; (g) Malawi Business Coalition Against AIDS. All coordination structures are represented in the National Partnership Forum.

Malawi has achieved greater gains in donor harmonization as indicated by: (a) Existence of a functional basket fund (inclusive of the Global Fund) for HIV and AIDS resources managed by the National AIDS Commission; (b) Fully functional HIV and AIDS Donor Development Group; (c) One national integrated annual workplan funded by both pool and discrete donors; (d) Participatory six monthly and annual review that produces an aide memoir signed by development partners and Government.

Poverty and food insecurity related humanitarian crisis continues to increase vulnerability of women, young people and other marginalized groups.

Critical human resource crisis, especially within the health sector, has been the major barrier to scaling up prevention, treatment, care and support efforts. Malawi is undergoing a decentralization process and currently there are inadequate or weak systems in financial management and procurement. Lack of these systems is another barrier to access, absorption and proper utilization of HIV resources at the district level.

Challenges

• Meeting the human resource capacity needs especially within key government ministries with special focus on the health sector; a formative evaluation of the current health sector six-year emergency human resource plan is required;

• Improved targeting of women, girls and other marginalized groups to enhance their access to available HIV related services: The Ministry of Gender requires additional capacity to coordinate the implementation of the recently developed National Plan of Action on women, girls and HIV and AIDS, and the National Orphans and Vulnerable Children Plan of Action;

• Addressing the triple threat of HIV, poverty and food insecurity: findings from the Malawi Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper review need to be analysed and dissemination strategy developed in order to influence policy and planning;

• Reaching the national universal access targets in the areas of prevention, treatment, care and support: reaching the universal access targets will not be possible unless the required systems and capacity are put into place especially at district level.

• Improved and harmonized monitoring of the response including addressing the bottlenecks to resource utilization especially at subnational level: decentralization of the monitoring and evaluation system to district level is critical for the utilization of monitoring and evaluation products for policy and programme planning.

• UNDAF results matrix: Five year UNDAF results matrix was developed which formed the basis of a comprehensive UN Implementation Support Plan with clear agency roles and outcomes.
• Key national action plans: Support was given towards the development of several key national action plans such as;
  1. National Plan of Action for orphans and vulnerable children,
  2. National Plan of Action for women, girls and HIV,
  3. Updated antiretroviral treatment five-year scale up plan reviewed,
  4. HIV testing and counselling scale up plan
  5. National monitoring and evaluation road map,
  6. Finalization of National AIDS Action Framework including costing and target setting.
• Four UN Joint programmes were developed i.e.
  1. Support for National and District-level Capacity Building for the HIV and AIDS Response,
  2. HIV Prevention among young people,
  3. Food Security and Nutrition Support for People Living with and/or Affected by HIV/AIDS
• Harmonization and alignment agenda: UN supported the harmonization and simplification agenda through carrying out;
  1. Mapping status of three ones,
  2. Brokering consensus on the remaining harmonization agenda,
  3. Mapping of Global Task Team recommendations,
  4. Facilitating consensus towards establishment of One UN Team on AIDS,
  5. Establishment of a National Partnership Forum.
• UN gave support to the application of the three "ones" principles through;
  1. advocacy and facilitating consensus on updated National AIDS Commission Trust Deed and roles of the Principal Secretary for HIV and AIDS.
• Donor harmonization: UN supported greater donor harmonization and alignment on HIV and AIDS issues through facilitating the set-up of an HIV and AIDS Development Group and successful advocacy towards expansion of the pool donor Memorandum of Understanding.
• UN implemented the UN HELP plan of action and UN learning strategy by
  1. recruitment of the UN HELP coordinator,
  2. conducted training on AIDS competency of UN staff.
• Mainstreaming of HIV and AIDS: Support was provided towards mainstreaming of HIV and AIDS into national development processes and tools such as the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy.

Plans and objectives for 2006 include:

• Implementation of the National AIDS Framework/Universal Access Road Map: UN will prioritize its scaling up and achievement of universal access targets. Several national plans of action that have been produced to operationalize the Framework will be supported including support towards implementation and monitoring of scale up plans on prevention of mother-to-child transmission, antiretroviral therapy, orphans and vulnerable children, women and girls, HIV testing etc.
• Review and implementation of the UN Implementation Support Plan which includes:
  1. Implementation and monitoring of the joint programs,
  2. Operationalize the "One" UN Team on HIV and AIDS and
  3. Scaling up implementation of the UN HELP plan of action and UN learning strategy.
• Resource mobilization and human capacity: Continue to support the government in its efforts to mobilize sustainable financing and strengthening of human resource capacity with priority given to the heath sector
• Organizational systems and timely resource disbursement: simplification and strengthening of organizational systems at sector and district level to facilitate timely disbursement of funds to local level implementers and acceleration of orphans and vulnerable children programmes
• Strategic planning and remaining harmonization agenda: strengthen national capacity for strategic planning and implementation of the remaining harmonization agenda. This includes facilitating consensus on clarity on oversight and accountability gap for key strategic areas of prevention and impact mitigation.

Contacts

Michael Keating
Chair, UN Theme Group on HIV/AIDS
(UN Resident Coordinator, UNDP)
Tel: +265 1 772 526
Email: michael.keating@undp.org

UNAIDS Country Coordinator
Desmond Johns
Tel: +265 1 772603
Fax: +265 1 773 992
Postal address:
P.O. Box 30135
Lilongwe 3, Malawi
Email: djohns@unaids.unvh.mw

NAC
Biswick Mwale
Executive Director
P.O. Box 30622
Lilongwe, Malawi
Tel: +265 1 770022
Fax: +265 1 776249
Email: bmwale@aidsmalawi.org.mw

Networks of People/Organizations Working on HIV/AIDS
Malawi Network of AIDS Service Organizations
Executive Director
P.O. Box 40435
Lilongwe 4, Malawi
Tel: +265 1 724 886

Networks of people living with HIV/AIDS
Tiwonge Loga
NAPHAM Secretariat
P/Bag 355
Lilongwe, Malawi
Tel: +265 1 770 803
Fax: +265 1 770 628
Email: naphamed@malawi.net

MANET Secretariat
The Director
P/Bag B 377
Lilongwe 3, Malawi
Tel: +265 1 773 727
Fax: +265 1 770194
Email: manetplus@manetplus.com

UNAIDS Global Report 2006 Data

Country profiles provide key information on the status-quo of the HIV pandemic in the countries of the region. Data is updated by the UNAIDS Country Offices on a yearly basis.