Regional Programs

Regional HIV/AIDS Program

USAID/Guatemala also manages the Central America and Mexico regional program for HIV/AIDS (Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome). The regional trade, rural diversification (quality coffee and forest products certification), and environment programs were managed by USAID/Guatemala until recently but are now being managed by USAID/El Salvador.

As part of the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, The Central America Regional HIV/AIDS program operates under USAID’s umbrella Central America and Mexico (CAM) strategy. The ultimate customers of the HIV/AIDS program are Central Americans at risk of contracting HIV/AIDS, people living with HIV/AIDS, and those close to them who are impacted by the disease. The Regional Program is designed to contain HIV/AIDS through targeted behavior change programs for the most at-risk populations according to the epidemiology of the disease, and implementation of improved policies and programs.

The program is multi-sectoral in that it brings together the public and private sectors and traditional and non-traditional partners, both religious and secular, to undertake participatory national strategic planning processes. The program enhances the participation and strengthening of local organizations to respond to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, particularly in the strategic use of information for advocacy, policy-making, and monitoring and evaluation of program efforts. It also works to reduce the stigma and discrimination associated with HIV and the populations most vulnerable to acquiring the infection, which impede the delivery and use of effective prevention practices. The program is also contributing to the strengthening of the coordination between prevention and treatment and care services and has contributed to human capacity development in this area.

The HIV/AIDS Regional Program is part of the Agency’s global effort to protect human health and, through the Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC), supports the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief to provide relief from the AIDS epidemic through increased access to prevention and treatment services. The Program also contributes to the Millennium Development Goal to “Halt and begin to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS.”

USAID works closely with a variety of partners including the United Nations Joint Program on AIDS (UNAIDS); the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; and other bilateral agencies and regional groups to enhance the active participation of vulnerable and affected groups in decision-making and national strategic planning under the “Three Ones” ( define ) policy endorsed by OGAC, and it strengthens the capacity of customer representatives capacity (e.g., NGOs, advocacy groups, and ministries of health) to develop more appropriate and effective interventions that respond to customers’ needs.

(See Where We Work for map, chart, and list of programs, partners and counterparts.)

Regional Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Program

USAID is working to prevent trafficking in persons (TIP) and to rescue and protect the male, female and child victims in a number of ways. First, by creating regional, national, and local networks to prevent TIP, protect and reintegrate trafficking victims, and prevent them from being re-trafficked. Second, by developing and implementing policies, laws, and regulations related to TIP. And third, by increasing awareness of the perils of trafficking among vulnerable groups and the population at large.

The regional TIP program provides counseling and vocational training to victims of trafficking and vulnerable populations. It also works closely with and promotes coordination among national governments, the civil society and other regional agencies such as the International Office of Migration and UNICEF as well as with other U.S. Government-supported programs and groups.

The regional TIP program supports activities in Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and in Mexico on the southern border with Guatemala in close coordination with USAID Mission representatives in each country and incorporates the rest of the region in information dissemination and networking.