PEPFAR

Q: What Are PEPFAR’s Priorities?

Progress: PEPFAR saves lives, prevents HIV infections, and accelerates progress toward achieving HIV/AIDS pandemic control in more than 50 countries around the world. Policies: PEPFAR ensures every dollar is optimally focused for impact through data-driven policies and supports partner countries to do the same. Populations: PEPFAR reaches the populations that are most affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic with innovative solutions that meet their needs. Partnerships: PEPFAR leverages the power of partnerships across multiple sectors to increase its impact and advance sustainability. Since its inception, PEPFAR has had remarkable lifesaving results . Below are details on just some of PEPFAR’s latest global program achievements.

Content From: HIV.gov•Updated: February 8, 2024•4 min read

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What is PEPFAR?

The U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) saves lives, prevents HIV infections, and accelerates progress toward achieving HIV/AIDS pandemic control in more than 50 countries around the world.

PEPFAR is the largest commitment by any nation to address a single disease in history, enabled by strong bipartisan support across ten U.S. congresses and four presidential administrations and through the American people’s generosity. PEPFAR shows the power of what is possible through compassionate, cost-effective, accountable, and transparent American foreign assistance.

Since PEPFAR’s inception in 2003, the U.S. government has invested over $100 billion in the global HIV/AIDS response, saving over 25 million lives, preventing millions of HIV infections, and supporting several countries to achieve HIV epidemic control, all while significantly strengthening global health and economic security.

The program leverages the power of partnerships across multiple sectors, reaches the populations that are most affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic with innovative solutions that meet their needs, ensures that every dollar is optimally focused for impact through data-driven policies, and supports partner countries to do the same. Through investments in HIV/AIDS, PEPFAR has contributed to stronger health systems in countries where it works, including laboratory and supply chain systems, data collection and surveillance systems, and strengthening the health workforce.

PEPFAR is managed and overseen by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy and implemented by seven U.S. government departments and agencies, leveraging the power of a whole-of-government approach to controlling the HIV/AIDS epidemic. On December 1, 2022, PEPFAR announced a new five-year strategy: Fulfilling America’s Promise to End the HIV/AIDS Pandemic by 2030. The Strategy centers on collaboration and partnership to confront the challenge of HIV/AIDS in the wake of other emerging health threats.

What Are PEPFAR’s Priorities?

Progress: PEPFAR saves lives, prevents HIV infections, and accelerates progress toward achieving HIV/AIDS pandemic control in more than 50 countries around the world.
Policies:PEPFAR ensures every dollar is optimally focused for impact through data-driven policies and supports partner countries to do the same.
Populations: PEPFAR reaches the populations that are most affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic with innovative solutions that meet their needs.
Partnerships: PEPFAR leverages the power of partnerships across multiple sectors to increase its impact and advance sustainability.

What Has Been PEPFAR’s Impact?

Since its inception, PEPFAR has had remarkable lifesaving results. Below are details on just some of PEPFAR’s latest global program achievements.

Details on just some of PEPFAR’s latest global program achievements. — Source: *PEPFAR: Latest Global Results, 2023*

Supporting Countries to Achieve Epidemic Control

As of 2022, PEPFAR has enabled more than a dozen countries to control the spread of HIV or reach the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) 2025 AIDS targets Exit Disclaimer, even without a vaccine or a cure, advancing global progress toward achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goal of ending the AIDS epidemic as a public health threat by 2030.

Delivering Life-Saving Antiretroviral Treatment

As of September 30, 2023, PEPFAR has supported life-saving antiretroviral therapy (ART) for nearly 20.5 million men, women, and children with HIV. Viral load testing coverage and suppression among people on treatment continue to increase for adults and children. In fiscal year 2023 (FY 2023), 96% of adults and 88% of children were virally suppressed. The massive, rapid expansion in access to treatment stands as one of PEPFAR’s greatest achievements for many reasons: not only has ART saved the lives of millions of people with HIV and increased their life expectancy to near-normal levels, but it allows individuals to achieve and maintain viral suppression, the strongest available intervention to prevent HIV transmission. (See PEPFAR’s annual report to Congress on HIV treatment.)

Empowering and Equipping Adolescent Girls and Young Women to Stay HIV-Free

Through the PEPFAR-led DREAMS (Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored, and Safe) public-private partnership, adolescent girls and young women are empowered and equipped to stay HIV-free throughout their adolescence. In FY 2023, 2.5 million adolescent girls and young women were reached through DREAMS HIV prevention services. Since 2015, new HIV diagnoses among adolescent girls and young women have declined in all geographic areas implementing DREAMS.

Enabling Babies to be Born HIV-Free and Supporting Orphans, Vulnerable Children, and Caregivers

As of September 30, 2023, with PEPFAR’s support, more than 5.5 million babies were born HIV-free. The program has also provided critical care and support for 7 million orphans, vulnerable children, and their caregivers so they can survive and thrive.

Preventing HIV Infection in Men and Boys

As of September 30, 2023. PEPFAR has supported 32.5 million with voluntary medical male circumcisions in East and Southern Africa to help protect men and boys from acquiring HIV. This is a one-time primary prevention intervention that reduces the risk of HIV transmission from women with HIV to men by 60 percent.

Strengthening Health Systems

PEPFAR’s investments also strengthen the systems that drive effective, efficient, and sustainable health care. PEPFAR is directly supporting 327,000 health care workers to deliver and improve HIV care and other health services, creating a lasting health system for partner countries to confront other current and future health challenges.

Access to PrEP

In FY 2023, PEPFAR supported 1.95 million people to newly enroll in antiretroviral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV infection. Uptake of PrEP increased from 1.5 million new PrEP enrollments in FY 2022.