5th Year of U.S.-funded AIDS Relief Project EPIC Kicked off in Vietnam

The fifth year (October 1, 2023-September 30, 2024) of the Meeting Targets and Maintaining Epidemic Control (EPIC), a joint project between the Vietnam Administration of HIV/AIDS Control (VAAC) and the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S. CDC) within the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) framework, has been kicked off in Hanoi recently.

Reviewing the fourth year of the project’s implementation (October 1, 2022-Septmber 30, 2023), VAAC Director and EPIC Manager Phan Thi Thu Huong said that as of June 2023, only 25% of the project’s total budget was disbursed. By the fifth year, there have been 26 Vietnamese cities/provinces getting technical support from EPIC and U.S. CDC.

Speaking at the event, Ms. Amy Bailey, Program Deputy Director, Division of Global HIV and TB (DGHT), at U.S. CDC Vietnam, said that the EPIC project has incorporated screening and management of non-communicable diseases into HIV care and played an important role as one of the leading partners of Vietnam at the central level to realize its National Strategy for HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control with the goal of ending HIV/AIDS by 2030.

The U.S. CDC and PEPFAR will work closely with the government partners to tailor support in a sustainable direction, she affirmed.

Mr. Minesh P Shah, chief health advisor at U.S. CDC’s Vietnam Office spoke highly HIV/AIDS containment achievements in Vietnam and from the EPIC project.

The EPIC project and Vietnam have contributed significantly to PEPFAR’s success in implementing life-saving services for HIV patients and preventing the epidemic. Vietnam is also one of the first countries to switch to a sustainable model and provide lessons for countries worldwide, he added.

At the event, representatives of the U.S. CDC, VAAC, and Can Tho city’s CDC signed a document for the EPIC’s fifth-year implementation in the city.

(Suc Khoe Doi Song, cdccantho.vn, suckhoe24h.suckhoecongdongonline.vn, vaac.gov.vn)