Authors: Gillian Schierhout 1 ; Malcolm Steinberg 1 ; Anthony Kinghorn 1 ; Alan Whiteside 2 Note: 1 = Abt Associates Inc. South Africa, 2 = HEARD of the University of Natal TOOLKIT RESOURCES FOR IMPACT ASSESSMENT & PLANNING RESPONSES OF GOVERNMENT SECTORS

BACKGROUND s Sector-specific government responses to HIV / AIDS are hindered by a lack of capacity and vertical health- driven responses s Existing tools have not enjoyed wide usage

AIM OF THE TOOLKIT To provide a resource to assist government sectors in their HIV / AIDS response

OBJECTIVES s To assist government ministries to identify areas in which they as employers and as service providers are vulnerable to the impacts of HIV / AIDS s To suggest specific steps that can be taken to manage impacts on government sectors

s Consultations with sector-experts s Review of literature s Preparation of draft toolkits s Workshop with government sector representatives from several sub-Saharan African countries s Post-workshop revision of toolkits s Dissemination via direct mailing and internet METHODS

s Useful in alerting non-health sectors to scope of issues involved and capacity of personnel required to respond to the epidemic s May be used at regional or even local level, with modification s In most instances, specialised assistance will be needed for impact assessment and response planning CONCLUSIONS

s Provide a useful framework at national, regional or even local levels and amendable to modification s Useful as a resource to define terms of reference and scope of work s Logistical and procedural difficulties in working with government sectors must not be underestimated s Overall tension regarding level of detail needed in a toolkit exists s Toolkits, on their own, are insensitive to the stage of planning a sector has been reached s Toolkits cannot prioritise for the sector s Toolkits cannot identify the specific purpose for which a particular action is to be undertaken and therefore cannot, on their own, identify short-term versus long term goals LESSONS FROM TOOLKIT USAGE IN TWO GOVERNMENT SECTORS IN SOUTH AFRICA

THE TOOLKIT COMPRISES: H Understanding HIV/AIDS H Why HIV/AIDS is a government issue H HIV/AIDS and ministry employees H Planning tools H H Agriculture H H Education H H Finance H H Health H H Housing H H Welfare H H Labour 4 Generic Documents 7 Sector Specific Documents

STEP 1 Understanding HIV/AIDS impacts in wider society, and the role of Government Ministries STEP 2 Identify internal impacts within the Ministry or Department STEPS DESCRIBED IN THE TOOLKIT

STEP 3 Identify external impacts that influence Ministry functions STEP 4 Identify appropriate action responses

COMBINED RESULT A sector specific impact assessment and response to HIV/AIDS