The HIV and AIDS Response Fund ("the Fund") is a 5 year, C$12,000,000 project established in 2008 to improve the health and quality of life of women and men, girls and boys, families and communities infected with, and affected by, HIV and AIDS. The Fund provides targeted support to South African civil society organizations to address HIV and AIDS in a gender responsive manner based on human rights principles and consistent with the Government of South Africa's HIV and AIDS Strategic Plan for 2007-2011.

The intermediate results expected of the project are as follows:

• Strengthened capacity of community service organization (CSO) partners to provide gender responsive HIV and AIDS services for individuals, families and communities infected with and affected by HIV and AIDS;
• strategic and more equitable access to quality HIV and AIDS services by CSO partners for women, men, boys and girls; and,
• improved collaboration and coordination between CSO partners and with government structures and other relevant stakeholders.

The Fund aims to achieve the following immediate results:

• improved project management capacity of partners;
• improved capacity of partners for gender responsive HIV and AIDS prevention and care programming;
• increased commitment of partners to gender responsive HIV and AIDS services;
• enhanced commitment by partners to community participation in HIV and AIDS services provision;
• increased ability to provide innovative responses to HIV and AIDS;
• increased awareness by partners of the importance of working collaboratively with government in the provision of integrated services; and,
• increased knowledge and skills sharing among partners.

By 2010, the Fund was supporting the work of 22 community based organizations across 6 provinces- the Eastern Cape, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and North West- with a combined budget of C$9,800,000.