PEPFAR In Crisis: Reigniting Our Collective Responsibility
INSPIRE calls on Independent Power Producers, government agencies, and all partners within the REIPPPP ecosystem to remember the power of aligned action.
Authors: Yakhuluntu Dubazana, Shirlane Douglas
During the COVID-19 crisis the RE sector stepped in at a time of crisis and we saw IPPs repurposed mobile units to deliver medications and PPE, fund stipends for community health volunteers, partnering with civil society to disseminate public health messages and adapt SED/ED budgets to meet urgent community needs. These rapid, adaptive responses didn’t just fill gaps—they saved lives.
We've done it before. Can we do it again?
Five years ago when faced with the COVID-19 crisis, IPPs across South Africa pivoted swiftly and meaningfully, integrating urgent humanitarian aid into their SED/ED spending. And right now, we at INSPIRE are raising the alarm to reignite the power of aligned action!
Since February this year, major USAID and PEPFAR-funded programs have been and are being terminated. The programs are foundational to the national HIV response, but are unraveling as we speak, leaving the country’s most vulnerable in limbo.
As funding disappears, over 40 PEPFAR-funded implementing partners have received termination notices, hundreds of community health workers are being retrenched, mobile clinics are grounded and drop-in centers are being shut. Everyday thousands of South Africans are at greater risk of infection, stigma and neglect.
How can we rise to meet this new challenge?
There is a significant geographical overlap of REIPPPP project locations overlap with many High Burden districts (areas with high rates of HIV and AIDS). This unique overlap is an opportunity for IPPs to step in and step up!
Here’s some ideas of what IPPs can do now:
- Keep the Lights On for Critical Services R5 000 a month can sustain the salary of a community health worker, provide transport for adherence clubs or rent safe spaces for HIV prevention workshops. These small, actionable items that can make an outsized impact.
- Leverage What You Already Have RE projects have physical assets—vehicles, communications infrastructure, and community networks. These could be redirected or shared with NGOs and clinics to resume outreach and mobile treatment for the most vulnerable.
- Coordinate with Implementing Partners A number of Implementing Partners are still active but under-resourced. Direct coordination, facilitated through local NGOs or even the Department of Health, can streamline support to the most urgent community-level needs, like medication delivery or mental health services.
- Use Your Voice for Advocacy Independent Power Producers and their consortiums have influence. By engaging local municipalities and provincial governments, they can advocate for the protection of community health budgets and urge for collaborative solutions.
Reimagining the Role of REIPPPP in Crisis Response
This isn’t about mission creep. It’s about values. The REIPPP model already embeds social responsibility into its structure. Now is the time to evolve that mandate—not as a replacement for government funding, but as a bridge during this critical moment.
Let’s remind ourselves: we are part of communities, not separate from them.
Let’s Not Let the Boulder Roll Back Down
Thanks to the tireless efforts of its people, PEPFAR and CDC, hard earned shifts in strategies, and an unparalleled community level relationships and infrastructure, South Africa has spent the last 15 years mounting one of the most determined responses to the pandemic.
Today we stand at over 5.9 million South Africans on life-saving treatment, and a 67% drop in AIDS-related deaths 2010 – this is not the time to slow or stop these efforts.
INSPIRE calls on Independent Power Producers, government agencies, and all partners within the REIPPPP ecosystem to remember the power of aligned action.
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