The Effectiveness of PEPFAR's Funding for Women and Children with HIV/AIDS

Has President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief's (PEPFAR) funding been effective in reducing the rate of HIV new infections and AIDS-related deaths among women and children? While previous studies have found HIV/AIDS aid to be ineffective and PEPFAR funding to produce negative externalities, there is lack of empirical examination of the impact of PEPFAR on women and children despite the emphasis on prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV during the Bush and Obama administrations. Using descriptive analysis and difference-in-differences (DID) regression, this study finds that PEPFAR's funding has reduced the HIV new infections and AIDS-related death rates of women and children for both focus countries and recipient countries, which are those that were added in a second phase. These findings show that PEPFAR's strategy for women and children has been effective and that it should be continued. However, while PEPFAR has contributed to the fight against HIV/AIDS, the effects of its work have been underestimated.