Kenya HIV/AIDS disaster response project national Aids control council: project implementation plan

Abstract

The diagnosis of HIV/AIDS was first made in 1984 and within a very short period the impact of the pandemic has reached a crisis situation affecting millions of lives and all development sectors. In November 1999 the Kenyan government declared the pandemic a national disaster requiring a multisectoral emergency response and large scale measures to contain the situation. It became apparent that the national resources alone would not be sufficient and the bilateral and multilateral responses to the national call would also not be sufficient. Kenya was already going through very difficult economic crisis with a high external debt burden, a nine year squeeze on resources by international partners, a drought crisis, high poverty levels, severe unemployment situation and escalating costs of goods and services brought about by the escalating costs of oil and energy. Yet it was essential that the government find additional resources to respond to the emergency situation.