CHAI began working in Uganda in 2007 to increase access to lifesaving antiretroviral therapy (ART) for children living with HIV. CHAI worked with the Ministry of Health to more efficiently distribute medications and scale up early infant diagnosis to ensure that HIV-exposed infants received treatment soon after birth. Today, we are supporting the government to implement the World Health Organization’s (WHO)-recommended ‘Test and Treat’ strategy to provide treatment to all people living with HIV, regardless of disease progression. We are coordinating a consortium of partners to identify and link to care HIV-positive children and adolescents, and use data to better identify and treat pregnant women to reduce mother-to-child transmission. We are also supporting the government to introduce new and better HIV medications and revise health guidelines.

To save the lives of mothers and their babies, we are implementing an integrated approach that promotes lifesaving interventions around childbirth with the aim of reducing deaths by 40 percent and stillbirths by 20 percent in six target districts with eventual scale up to the rest of the country. While mortality for children under five has steadily declined over the last two decades, vaccine-preventable deaths from malaria, pneumonia, and diarrhea remain unacceptably high.

CHAI is working with the government and partners to improve vaccine delivery systems with the goal of reaching every child. We are also working alongside the American Cancer Society to improve access to lifesaving diagnosis and treatment for cancer including reducing prices for essential chemotherapies and working alongside the Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI) to introduce telepathology and access to pathology supplies, utilizing a network of U.S.-based pathologists to provide technical assistance and capacity building support for medical providers.