The 2019-2022 cycle of the Global Fund Multi-Country Caribbean grant received favourable ratings in the end of project evaluation. The evaluators found that the project implemented by the PANCAP-CVC-COIN Consortium was highly relevant and attuned with the objectives, needs, policies and priorities of its stakeholders in countries in which it was implemented. The project was also commended for its simultaneous top-down and bottom-up design which was aimed at supporting key population (KP) groups by responding to the region’s current epidemiology, social norms, human rights, and other HIV-related trends. The project’s main emphasis was on addressing issues including gender based violence, stigma, discrimination and other structural barriers as well as supporting the strengthening of national and regional HIV policies, strategies and programs. The evaluators noted however that the project increased in relevance due to the difficult personal, social, economic and care conditions created by the COVID-19 pandemic and the response it provided to KPs and their organizations.
In terms of effectiveness of the project, the evaluators pointed out that while some of the major objectives were adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, many project activities and outputs contributed to reinforcing its overall longer-term impact. The evaluators emphasized that what the project lacked in terms of effectiveness, to some extent, was compensated for by the longer term and potentially transformative effects of some of its activities, outputs and outcomes which they deemed significant in terms of key population programming. The evelaution found that activities undertaken were also liley to lead to the improvement across a number of variables such as stigma, discrimination, human rights protection, community-based advocacy, institutional strengthening, capacity building, and improved financial sustainability.
The evaluators concluded that the Project did make significant differences in the regional HIV response, the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and in the implementing organizations’ capacities for advocacy, as well as potential for resource seeking and fundraising. Additionally they opined that it advanced efforts to fight barriers such as gender based violence, stigma and discrimination and human rights violations.
