Health Aids and Population (HAP)

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Health, AIDS and Population: Portfolio and Financial
Instruments
Community assistance to the 71 2ACP (Africa, Caribbean and Pacific)
states in Health, AIDS and Population, has more than quadrupled since
1990 growing from under 100 million Euro to around 400 million Euro in
1998. At the same time, levels of funding to the countries of Asia, Latin
America and the Mediterranean have also expanded significantly reaching around 300 million Euro in 1998. Initially this aid was mainly directed at specific projects but increasingly the EC has moved towards supporting more comprehensive sector-wide programmes and to providing
packages of assistance designed to offset the social impact of the
macroeconomic reforms that many developing countries are currently
undergoing. While supporting the restructuring process itself the aim
here has been to ensure that priority is also given to its deployment in
the social sectors, especially health. As more countries move towards
implementing far reaching reforms of their health sectors, direct budgetary aid has been seen as a particularly effective way of assisting
them in their development efforts. In India for example, the Community
has recently invested some 200 million Euro in the Government's
Health and Family Welfare Reform Programme as part of a larger package supported by other major donors designed to re-orientate the country's approach towards a more comprehensive reproductive health strategy.
Thematic budget lines
To complement the principal financial and technical cooperation instruments, special Community thematic budget lines have been used to
support key policy and strategy development work in HIVIAIDS, population and gender. With total commitments approaching 30 million Euro
in 1998, these funds are designed to support the testing out of innovative methodologies and strategies and the generation of knowledge in
gaps of understanding.
NGO Co-financing
Another instrument which has come to play an increasingly important
role in supporting Health, AIDS and Population work over recent years
is the NGO co-financing line. This has been a flexible mode of funding
for European NGOs who in collaboration with their developing country

partners are seen by the Community as a particularly effective
means of reaching the poorest and most marginalised communities. Funding to HAP activities through this channel amounted to
over 60 million Euros in 1998.
EC Commitments to Health, AIDS and Population through
NGO Co-Financing

80
70
606 E..
50
40
30
20
o10 -
1995 1996 1997 1998

Research
The Community also supports research geared towards the
health problems of developing countries within its regular
research budget. Emphasis is placed on active collaboration in
research between scientists from both developing country and
European institutions on the basis of equal partnerships. The collaborative nature of the work allows EU researchers to understand global health issues better and developing country scientists to gain access to high-level research of particular relevance
to their countries most pressing problem.