India has the third largest population of HIV infected persons. The Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu including Pondicherry are geographic “hot spots” for the country’s HIV epidemic. It is feared that the epidemic, now concentrated among high-risk groups, could spread farther to the general population.

The Samarth project is one of three components under the umbrella of the $49-million Enhance Project that works to address HIV/AIDS in India. The project contributes to implementing HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment through technical assistance, capacity-building, and institutional strengthening of government and civil society institutions. The key strategic approaches of the project are capacity building, engendering bold leadership and demonstrating best practices.

The project provides needs-based capacity-building assistance and builds leadership at different levels (community, district, state, national) to government and non-government stakeholders using workshops, conferences, site visits, and exchange programs. The project supports placement of program and technical experts at the national, state, and district levels of government. The Samarth project also provides tailored technical assistance to individuals and organizations at the national, state and district levels. The Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) also benefits from technical assistance to strengthen the leadership and governance of the County Coordinating Mechanism Secretariat.

Four demonstration projects in Delhi receive program management support to demonstrate promising practices in HIV prevention interventions for adolescents, especially girl children in communities of most-at-risk populations like traditional sex workers and street children; and other care and treatment interventions for orphans and vulnerable children.