Evaluation of Participatory, Multisectoral Planning for HIV/AIDS in Key States in Mexico Deborah A. Caro (March 2002)  Full Document (English)      Order for free      email to me  The objective of POLICY’s HIV/AIDS Program in Mexico is “to support the government’s effort to enhance the quality and sustainability of HIV/AIDS/STI services in targeted states.” The focus of the project in the three initial states of Yucatán, Guerrero and Mexico has been to promote coalition building and a participatory strategic planning process among diverse stakeholders. POLICY has worked in Mexico at the bequest of and in close collaboration with CENSIDA, the national agency responsible for oversight of HIV/AIDS services and prevention programs in Mexico. The principal purposes of the evaluation were to understand what worked well, where POLICY’s tools have been most successful, and what could be learned from mistakes. The evaluation was also an opportunity to elicit some lessons learned from the Multisectoral Citizens’ Groups (MCGs) in the first three states where the project has been active and to codify some common principles from POLICY’s process from the varied experiences in different states. Another area of inquiry focused on identifying other complementary processes that POLICY and CENSIDA could employ to strengthen the effectiveness of governmental and nongovernmental groups in transforming the policy process in targeted states. There was general agreement among all of the project’s stakeholders that they had made significant contributions to improvements in HIV/AIDS prevention activities and in the quality of services in Mexico by supporting local initiatives. Similarly, there was strong praise for the quality and dedication of the POLICY staff. In particular, the clients in the three states interviewed during the evaluation expressed an overwhelmingly positive experience with the project. The project has supported the formation of active MCGs in three states (Guerrero, Mexico, and Yucatán). Project staff also tried to organize a similar group in the Federal District (D.F.) but found that it was difficult to build the same level of commitment and coordination. Instead of supporting the formation of a MCG in the D.F., POLICY helped to develop a local council for HIV/AIDS prevention (CODFSIDA). Toward the end of 2001 POLICY had expanded its work to Campeche, Chiapas, Oaxaca, Quintana Roo, and Veracruz. The MCG in Yucatán will work with the groups in Campeche and Quintana Roo. This represents a new phase in the project whereby older groups provide technical assistance for the formation of new groups. Another innovation is that local groups in the newly participating states are conducted by the members of the multisectoral groups rather than by outside consultants.