Peace Corps/Swaziland's PEPFAR-funded program directly supports the goals of its Community Health (HIV/AIDS) Education Project, which include improving health behavior of rural Swazis, strengthening the capacity of community-based organizations and strengthening the technical capacity of community-based service providers that serve them. Peace Corps' PEPFAR-funded program aligns with two of the five goals of the PEPFAR Partnership Framework: Sexual Prevention (Abstinence and Be Faithful and Condoms and Other Prevention) and Impact Mitigation for Vulnerable Children. Geographically, volunteers are placed in rural communities in all four regions throughout the country. They live and work in communities where few, if any, other international organizations offer support or services. In response to Swaziland's generalized epidemic, Volunteers' activities target in and out of school young people 15 24 years of age and other orphans and vulnerable children, and male and female adults.

Peace Corps/Swaziland's PEPFAR-funded program is monitored by the PEPFAR Technical Coordinator with assistance from two Associate Directors (Health), and one Program Assistant. The Country Director and Associate Director (Administration) provide management and financial oversight. Volunteers and their counterparts receive training in monitoring and evaluation.

Peace Corps/Swaziland's PEPFAR-funded activities relate to the following cross-cutting program areas: 1) Human resources for health (HRH), 2) Education, and 3) Gender: Reducing Violence and Coercion. Volunteers address HRH by collaborating with other partners to provide in-service training for community-based Kagogo Clerks and other NGO/CBO service providers such as Rural Health Motivators, peer educators, and caregivers. Regarding education, Volunteers train peer educators in prevention, teach lifeskills to youth, and train caregivers in psychosocial support techniques. Volunteers also work with community partners to reduce violence and coercion through interpersonal communication and community mobilization aimed at empowering female youth and mothers and promoting men as partners. In addition, Volunteers collaborate with local labor and workplace programs to provide prevention training to employees such as teachers, clerks, and field workers.

Monitoring and evaluation for the Community Health (HIV/AIDS) Education project is lead by two Associate Directors who manage the program. Assistance is provided by the PEPFAR Technical Coordinator and Program Assistant who monitor the VAST program specifically. Data collection is done on a periodic basis (three times per year) for non-funded activities and on a project-by-project basis for funded activities. Periodic data are submitted electronically in Excel and processed using an Access database. Project data are submitted in hard copy and transferred to Excel for storage and tabulation. All data are reviewed on periodic and annual basis to determine the program's progress towards meeting targets. Data are also used to report results to the USG PEPFAR team, to PCHQ, and to local partners. Annually, program staff use the data to determine progress towards our six-year plan and to identify gaps in or opportunities for future work. For example, based upon past years' evaluations, we have identified opportunities to formally expand our work into HKID and HVOP, areas where Volunteers had already begun working informally and without direct support.

The PC program in Swaziland has recently signed a new MOU with the GKOS, reinforcing Swaziland's desire to have Volunteers work throughout the Kingdom on HIV/AIDS and education issues. Volunteers promote sustainability of their efforts through training and collaborating with local partners and community members thereby enriching the capacity of Swazis to promote HIV prevention and impact mitigation efforts.

Peace Corps/Swaziland's approach to cost-effiency is to train Volunteers and their community counterparts to design, implement and evaluate appropriate interventions to meet the needs of their communities and to promote collaboration with each other. In addition, Peace Corps/Swaziland provides small grants to grassroots organizations in communities where health investments are scarce for local HIV prevention and care activities. In the past Peace Corps/Swaziland funded larger and centrally-organized activities (e.g., annual youth conferences and "Walk the Nation), which were more costly, harder to implement, and harder to evaluate than the community-based activities. In FY10, Peace Corps/Swaziland will reduce the number of Peace Corps-directed activities in favor of investing in more small grants for community-initiated activities.

Approximately 56 Volunteers (and their community counterparts who receive PEPFAR-funded pre and in-service training) support service providers and organizations that care for vulnerable children in the underserved rural areas of Swaziland. COP 10 represents the second year that Peace Corps/Swaziland receives HKID funds. Volunteers and their counterparts prioritize community support and coordination, and family/household strengthening by working within existing community-level structures, such as schools, churches, Neighborhood Care Points, KaGogo Social Centres. Activities focus on male and female vulnerable children (<17 years) and their caregivers, and include forming and strengthening psycho-social support groups, conducting health and HIV education, developing life skills, supporting economic strengthening activities among young people, and bringing mobile resources and services to the community. More specifically, Volunteers are training vulnerable children on nutrition, decision making, peer support, forming positive relationships, good study habits, and more. Psychosocial support includes assisting vulnerable children and caregivers with coaching to manage grief and loss, training on stigma reduction, and partnerships with churches and other support organizations to meet spiritual and social needs. On economic strengthening, Volunteers will help beneficiaries to begin or enhance small-income generation activities to support themselves and their support groups, such as production or household cleaning products, crafts, garden produce, or other items which fit the local market.

Peace Corps/Swaziland uses HKID funds for small grants called, Volunteer Activity Support & Training (VAST) to support community-based activities for vulnerable children and their caregivers. Volunteers live in their communties and work closely with their counterpartds for two years. Volunteers and their counterparts receive training in monitoring and evaluation and report results to Peace Corps and local partners. Peace Corps/Swaziland staff oversee the work of the Volunteers, provide technical assistance as needed, and collaborate with other PEPFAR-funded partners to assure the quality of its interventions.

Approximately 56 Peace Corps Volunteers and their community counterparts, who receive PEPFAR-funded pre- and in-service training, implement activities focused on promoting HIV prevention through abstinence and being faithful (AB) in underserved rural areas of Swaziland. Given Swaziland's generalized epidemic, with multiple concurrent sexual partners as one of the key drivers, these activities target behavior change among male and female youth under age 25, including in- and out-of-school youth, and male and female adults. Volunteers and their counterparts also engage religious leaders and church goers in activities emphasizing faithfulness. Through on-the-job training and more formal programs, Volunteers train community-based service providers on delivering AB messages. Volunteers address gender inequality and male norms by promoting girls' and women's empowerment among the most disenfranchised rural females, as well as promoting men-as-partners among males. Volunteers collaborate with local labor and workplace programs to provide prevention training to employees such as teachers, clerks, and field workers. Volunteers' activities include youth camps, trainings, public-awareness events, school health clubs, and mentoring programs. Volunteers partner with existing services in the schools and the communities to enhance service delivery to the vulnerable children, including through Career Guidance Programs and Kagogo Social Centres.

Peace Corps/Swaziland uses PEPFAR funds for small community-initiated AB-focused activities through a grant program, Volunteer Activity Support & Training (VAST). VAST grants support youth and adult peer educator programs and activities of Rural Health Motivators and other community partners enaged in promoting AB messages. In addition, VAST grants fund activities that address public norms regarding sexual coercion and promoting the role of parents and other protective influences. Activities may include training, seminars, awareness campaigns, camps, or other engagement techniques.

Volunteers live in their communties and work closely with their counterparts for two years. Volunteers and their counterparts receive training in monitoring and evaluation and report results to Peace Corps and local partners. Peace Corps/Swaziland staff oversee the work of the Volunteers, provide technical assistance as needed, and collaborate with other PEPFAR-funded partners to assure the quality of supported interventions.

COP 10 represents the first year that Peace Corps/Swaziland will receive HVOP funds. Swaziland has a generalized epidemic where a key driver is multiple concurrent sexual partners. Approximately 56 Peace Corps Volunteers and their community counterparts, who will receive PEPFAR-funded pre- and in-service training, will implement HIV prevention activities focused on promoting the use of condoms and other prevention (C/OP) in the underserved rural areas of Swaziland. Volunteers and their community counterparts will promote behavior change, emphasizing the correct and consistent use of condoms and STI management among males and females ages 15-24 years. These activities will support other PEPFAR-partners' promotion of male circumcision. Volunteers address gender inequality and male norms by promoting girls' and women's empowerment among the most disenfranchised rural females, as well as promoting men-as-partners among males. Activities for both males and females will include one-on-one mentoring, small group trainings, public-awareness events, and materials distribution. Venues to reach these audiences include Kagogo Social Centres, clinics, churches, local shops, youth centres, factories and other places of employment.

Peace Corps/Swaziland will use PEPFAR funds for small community-initiated C/OP-focused activities through a grant program called, Volunteer Activity Support & Training (VAST). VAST grants support peer educator programs and activities of Rural Health Motivators and other community partners enaged in promoting C/OP messages. In addition, VAST grants fund activities that address public norms regarding sexual coercion and promoting the role of parents and other protective influences. Activities could include public demonstrations or awareness campaigns, small training events, one-on-one teaching, or other meaningful techniques to engage the audience.

Volunteers live in their communties and work closely with their counterparts for two years. Volunteers and their counterparts receive training in monitoring and evaluation and report results to Peace Corps and local partners. Peace Corps/Swaziland staff oversee the work of the Volunteers, provide technical assistance as needed, and collaborate with other PEPFAR-funded partners to assure the quality of supported interventions.