Capacity Building for Sustainable HIV Services | HRSA 21 064

Opportunity Information: Apply for HRSA 21 064

The Capacity Building for Sustainable HIV Services opportunity (HRSA-21-064) is a discretionary cooperative agreement funded through the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) within the Department of Health and Human Services. Its central aim is to strengthen the ability of PEPFAR-supported countries to deliver high-quality, efficient, equitable, and sustainable HIV services by investing in the people, systems, and institutions that make HIV programs work over the long term. Rather than focusing only on short-term service delivery, the award is designed to build durable country capacity so national and local partners can maintain and improve HIV outcomes even as external support evolves or decreases.

The program defines "capacity building" broadly, covering the quality and effectiveness of HIV clinical care as well as the non-clinical supports that help patients enter and stay in care. This includes making services more patient-centered and safe, expanding access for underserved groups, addressing inequities, and improving overall system performance. HRSA emphasizes partnership with in-country stakeholders such as Ministries of Health, civil society organizations, faith-based and community-based groups, and key population networks. A major thread running through the opportunity is sustainability: transitioning leadership and implementation to local partners, strengthening health systems, and ensuring countries can remain agile and responsive to changing needs in resource-limited settings.

A key policy and performance target for the work is progress toward the UNAIDS 95-95-95 goals: increasing the share of people living with HIV who know their status, ensuring those diagnosed receive sustained treatment, and achieving viral suppression for those on therapy. To support movement along the full HIV care continuum, the opportunity prioritizes improvements in diagnosis, linkage to care, initiation of treatment, retention, and viral suppression. It also seeks to improve health outcomes for people living with HIV by building a capable, well-distributed health workforce with the right mix of skills to address HIV and other public health priorities, recognizing that workforce capacity is often the limiting factor in consistent, high-quality service delivery.

Programmatic focus areas include comprehensive, client-centered service delivery models; quality improvement efforts that close performance gaps and reduce inequities; and deeper integration of HIV services into primary health care. It also highlights strengthening Human Resources for Health (HRH), which can include training, mentorship, supportive supervision, and systems that help countries recruit, deploy, and retain health workers. In addition, the grant encourages interventions that address broader determinants of health, including behavioral health needs, which can affect adherence, retention, and overall wellbeing. Another major emphasis is the use of data and technology, including data management, health informatics solutions to identify and track patients, and approaches such as telemedicine and e-learning to expand reach and standardize learning and support.

Operationally, the project provides direct technical assistance to Ministries of Health and to regional and local government entities, while also supporting institutional capacity building so local organizations can take on increasing responsibility. The notice indicates the program will continue supporting countries already receiving HRSA capacity building support through HRSA's International AIDS Education and Training Centers (IAETC) platform (specifically Mozambique, Botswana, India, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and Ukraine), while also extending programming to additional countries. The overall objective is to help countries achieve and/or maintain HIV epidemic control within PEPFAR-supported programs by embedding improvements into routine health system functions and local ownership structures.

From the posted opportunity data, HRSA anticipated making two awards under this cooperative agreement mechanism. The listing notes an award ceiling of 0, which typically signals that the ceiling was not specified in the summary field rather than implying no funding. The opportunity was originally posted February 25, 2021, with an original closing date of May 7, 2021. Eligibility is listed broadly as "Others" with additional clarification referenced in the full announcement, meaning applicants likely needed to consult the complete notice for specific eligibility requirements and any restrictions tied to international work, partnerships, or demonstrated technical capacity.

• The Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Capacity Building for Sustainable HIV Services" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.266.
• This funding opportunity was created on Feb 25, 2021.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 07, 2021. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for HRSA 21 064

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