MDH Global Fund Cycle 7

The MDH Global Fund Cycle 7 (GC7) project is a comprehensive, three-year initiative funded by GFATM to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), and malaria across 19 regions in Mainland Tanzania. The project focuses on achieving five key objectives:

1. HIV Testing and Diagnosis: Implement efficient HIV testing strategies to ensure that 95% of people living with HIV (PLHIV) know their status by 2025.
2. Stigma Reduction: Decrease HIV-related stigma to less than 5% by 2025, improving from a 2013 baseline of 25% external stigma and 21% internal stigma.
3. Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT): Reduce mother-to-child HIV transmission rates during breastfeeding from 7.9% in 2021 to below 4% by 2025.
4. TB Treatment Coverage: Enhance TB treatment coverage from 53% in 2018 to 90% by addressing barriers to access and meeting the needs of key vulnerable populations (KVPs).
5. Strengthening TB Services: Improve TB prevention and care for miners and their families by 2025.

Roles and Responsibilities

MDH serves as Principal Recipient-2 (PR2), managing funds allocated to five non-state actors (NSAs) as sub-recipients (SRs). The SRs focus on implementing community-based interventions targeting key populations, including:

• Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) and Adolescent Boys and Young Men (ABYM) aged 10–24 (both in and out of school).
• Men of High Risk (MHR) and Women of High Risk (WHR).
• Pregnant and breastfeeding women aged 15–49 years.

MDH collaborates with Principal Recipient-1 (PR1), overseen by the Ministry of Health (MOH), and works alongside POLARG, MoCDGWSG, other multisectoral ministries, development partners, and NSAs.

Key Programmatic Interventions

• Community-based TB/DR-TB care.
• Facility-based HIV testing for AGYW.
• Self-testing initiatives for key populations.
• Drug-resistant TB treatment, care, and support.
• Addressing human rights barriers to prevention for AGYW in high HIV-incidence areas.
• Stigma and discrimination elimination across all settings.
• Operational research on TB and HIV-related topics.
• Integrated TB/HIV screening, diagnosis, treatment, and collaborative interventions.

Key Outcomes

The GC7 project aims to enhance access to essential health services for vulnerable populations, strengthen community and facility-based interventions, and reduce the burden of HIV, TB, and malaria in Tanzania, with a special focus on removing systemic barriers and stigma. Through its coordinated efforts, the project seeks to create sustainable health outcomes and contribute to the global fight against these epidemics.