In July 2009 GSK CEO Andrew Witty announced the new Positive Action for Children Fund for community programmes that mitigate the impact of HIV and AIDS on children and their families. The Fund is an integral part of ViiV Healthcare's commitment to communities affected by HIV and AIDS: the company will invest £50 million ($80 million) in the Fund over the next ten years.

The Positive Action for Children Fund aims to support and inform the global effort to alleviate the impact of HIV and AIDS on maternal and child health by supporting interventions that engage affected communities, developing their capacity to participate and lead.

The scope of the Positive Action for Children Fund has been determined following consultations with donors, researchers, NGOs and practitioners, along with the focus of its first requests for proposals.

Below you can find details of how the Fund will work, what types of project will be eligible for funding, and how to apply for grants.

Grant criteria and application
The Positive Action for Children Fund has opened its first Requests for Proposals (RFPs). Proposals should be prepared by following this detailed guidance (Download Requests for Proposals 1 & 2 see the attached document below) and submitted by the deadline, midnight (GMT) on Friday 7th May 2010. This document contains full guidance, a mandatory application form, and a set of answers to some of the most frequently asked questions.

Proposals submitted late, or that do not follow this guidance and comply with its criteria will not be considered. Unsolicited proposals for funds will not be considered.

Later this year we will invite concept notes for projects that fall outside these two Requests for Proposals. But in this first round proposals must focus on one of the following areas:

Focus of RFP1 This first Request for Proposals from the Positive Action for Children Fund is focused on the integration of HIV and sexual and reproductive health services leading to improved access to and continuity of services for men and women at risk of HIV or living with HIV.

All projects should have a strong component of community involvement to ensure demand for these services is generated or increased. Project objectives should contribute to the enhancement and integration of services in WHO’s PMTCT elements 1 or 2, or together: primary HIV prevention; and improved sexual health and prevention of unintended pregnancies.

Focus of RFP2 This second Request for Proposals from the Positive Action for Children Fund is focused on the support of infants, children and adolescents living with HIV and their families within their communities, promoting a family-centred approach.

Projects may focus on one area of need for any subset of this age group or cover a number across the age range, including, but not restricted to: early infant diagnosis; nutrition; support around maintenance of and adherence to ARV treatment; sexual and reproductive health education, services and rights; stigma and discrimination.

Projects that are delivered in conjunction with affected communities and seek to develop continuing capacity in those communities and their organisations are encouraged.

We have tried to provide all the information you should need to prepare your proposal, including a set of Q&A at the end of the guidance, but you may have one or more specific questions you need to put to us. Queries on these two RFPs received by e-mail (positiveactionforchildren@viivhealthcare.com) will be answered as quickly as possible and will be used to update the existing Q&A periodically.

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