RESUMO
BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study is to examine how PEPFAR's policies have changed and how these affects Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) issue in two focus countries (Botswana and Ethiopia) and two non-focus countries (Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo, or DR of Congo). METHOD: This study investigates one country with the highest HIV rate (Botswana) and one with the lowest rates (Ethiopia) among the focus countries, as well as one each with the highest rate (Zimbabwe) and the lowest rate (DR Congo) among the non-focus countries. RESULTS: This study finds that President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has tended to change its strategies depending on a recipient country's epidemiology and has spent less in non-focus than in focus countries. CONCLUSIONS: But by revealing the contributions and limitations of PEPFAR in four African countries, this study shows how PEPFAR can improve its future policies in these countries.