The past decade has seen tremendous progress in making services to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) more available in many HIV high-prevalence settings. Despite this progress, new HIV infections among pregnant women, newborns, and infants remain unacceptably high, and AIDS remains one of the leading causes of death among women of reproductive age and infants worldwide.

To eliminate mother-to-child transmission, HIV programs are increasingly seeking ways to engage private actors more fully in expanding and sustaining national HIV and PMTCT responses. This technical brief presents options for engaging private sector actors in rapidly extending the availability of PMTCT services. The discussion includes successes, lessons, and challenges that can inform the efforts of governments, donors, and implementers to adapt or replicate private sector models in new settings.

Abt staff members contributed to the report, including Senior Associate James J. White, Senior Analyst Sean Callahan, Associate Analyst Samantha Lint, and former Abt Analyst Helen Li.