PEPFAR kids

Kenya PEPFAR

In 2003, MHRP Kenya began providing some of the first-ever PEPFAR-supported HIV services in Kericho. These services have now expanded throughout the South Rift Valley (SRV) region, into Kisumu West and now encompass a military-to-military collaboration with the Kenya Defence Forces. The HIV research, prevention and treatment programs are mutually synergistic with long-term capacity building and sustainability goals.

The Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) initiative, which is a military-to-military HIV prevention, care and treatment program based out of Nairobi, strengthens HIV-service provision for military personnel and their families.

The second program, Kisumu West (KW), is a civilian HIV prevention, care and treatment initiative operating through 33 facilities and associated community sites in select Kisumu and Seme sub-counties. Located near Kenya’s third-largest city and Lake Victoria, these counties and their immediate neighbors demonstrate the largest burden of HIV-disease in Kenya.

The third program is South Rift Valley (SRV), a comprehensive civilian HIV prevention, care and treatment initiative that provides services in 412 facilities to four sub-counties in southeast Kenya, including Bomet, Kericho, Narok and Nandi counties. MHRP is also supporting these sub-counties in their transition to local health governance and ownership to enhance future sustainability of HIV programming.

Program Highlights

  • HIV Self-testing

    The KDF program rolled out a new self-testing approach so that military personnel of all ranks have discrete access to self-testing kits. This program helps eliminates stigma associated with HIV testing and encourages more wide-spread testing among high-risk groups.

    Adolescent and Pediatric Treatment

    Kisumu West initiated Operation Triple Zero, which focuses on engaging adolescents and young people to take charge of their health by ensuring “zero missed appointments, zero missed medication(s) and zero viral load.” This successful program tracks viral load and provides special peer support and counseling coupled with weekend clinic hours for adolescents, and has significantly increased adherence to treatment.

    Orphans and Vulnerable Children

    PEPFAR’s orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) program provides services to hundreds of high-risk children and their caregivers by supporting scholastic materials, school uniforms, backpacks, school fees and sanitary pads.

    Social Media Outreach for Key Populations (KP)

    In 2020, Kericho launched an innovative social media outreach campaign to address the needs of hard-to-reach key populations (KP) in collaboration with community-based organizations. The initiative aims to help reduce stigma and discrimination while increasing KP’s access to essential prevention, care and treatment services.