Since the first case of HIV infection was identified in 1988, Nepal has been able to make some substantial progress in National HIV & AIDS response; nevertheless, still there is a lot to do. HIV prevalence among adult population has been declining in slow pace (from 0.34% in 2005 to 0.20% in 2015), however, country has made significant achievement in reduction of new HIV infection from 7,512 annually in 2,000 to 1,331 in 2015, despite of high HIV prevalence among certain population groups such as people who inject drugs and male and transgender sex workers. HIV prevalence among this sub-groups is more than 5% due to which Nepal’s HIV epidemic is categorized as concentrated epidemic. These achievements so far in terms of reduction in HIV prevalence and new HIV infection is the result of collaborative efforts of government entities, non-governmental organizations, civil society organization and communities of key affected populations.
AMDA Nepal, through financial and technical support from United States Agency for International Development (USAID), through FHI360 has been managing HIV prevention, care, support and treatment projects in Nepal since 1998. LINKAGES Nepal builds on the learning and experiences from more than two decades of USAID’s support to Government of Nepal (GoN) for HIV responses. The project is a continuation of that support and is designed to fit very well with global goals, GoN’s priorities and commitment to SDGs and the new National HIV Strategic Plan 2016-2021 and USAID Nepal’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS). ....