Guide to the strategic planning process for a national response to HIV/AIDS : Module 3

---

---

---

UNAIDS/98.21
©Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, 1998. All rights reserved. This publication may be
freely reviewed, quoted, reproduced or translated, in part or in full, provided the source is
acknowledged. It may not be sold or used in conjunction with commercial purposes without prior
written approval from UNAIDS (contact: UNAIDS Information Centre Ð 20, avenue Appia Ð 1211
Geneva 27 Ð Switzerland or e-mail: unaids@unaids.org).

---

Table of contents
I. Introduction
I.1
Why formulate a strategic plan?.......................................................... 5
I.2
Different options of strategic plans ...................................................... 5
• Example: Philippines National HIV/AIDS Strategy ............................... 6
I.3
Using this module ............................................................................... 6
I.4
Who will use the finished strategic plan? ............................................ 7
II. Responsibilities
II.1
Overall responsibility............................................................................ 8
II.2
Strategic plan formulation team ......................................................... 8
• Example: Members of a working group on youth................................ 9
II.3
Administration of strategic plan formulation........................................ 9
II.4
Scheduling of steps ............................................................................. 11
III. Formulation a strategic plan
What is a strategy.......................................................................................... 12
• Example: Multi-initiative strategy for increasing condom use......................... 12
III.1 Re-examine the national guiding principles ......................................... 13
III.2 Confirm priority areas for a national response ..................................... 13
III.3 Set objectives in priority areas.............................................................. 14
III.4 Develop strategies to reach objectives in priority areas........................ 14
• Example: Turning an obstacle into an opportunity............................... 15
III.5 Develop a strategic framework for the national response.................... 15
III.6 Examine the strengths and weaknesses of proposed strategies........... 16
III.7 Revise objectives and strategies where necessary................................ 17
III.8 Plan flexible management and funding to ensure support for
emerging strategies ............................................................................. 18
• Example: Strategy formulation for one priority area: Reducing HIV
• transmission among young people..................................................... 19
IV. Producing a strategic plan document
IV.1 Example: Outline of a strategic plan.............................................................. 24
IV.2 Circulating the strategic plan......................................................................... 25
IV.3 Using the final strategic plan......................................................................... 25
V. Next steps: resource mobilization, operational plans,
V. implementation ............................................................................................. 26
VI. Bibliography ................................................................................................. 27
3
3 Strategic Plan Formulation
UNAIDS Strategic Planning Guide

---

---

I. Introduction to strategic plan formulation
The strategic planning process encompasses the answer to three questions:
What is the HIV situation in the country?
What has been done about it so far?
What should be done about it in the future?
The first two questions should have been answered by the situation and the response analyses de-
scribed in Modules 1 and 2 of this Guide. This third module, which deals with the third question,
rests solidly on the work done in the first two phases of planning.
Many of the questions asked in the process of formulating strategies are similar to those asked when
analysing the situation and the response. The difference is that in formulating a strategic plan, a
country seeks to change specific situations, taking advantage of all opportunities and considering all
potential obstacles to move towards a situation where HIV spreads less rapidly and has fewer neg-
ative consequences for those infected, their families, and society. For example, one of the oppor-
tunities that should not be missed is creating a national development plan, in which HIV/AIDS
activities should be integrated as much as possible.
I.1 Why formulate a strategic plan?
While the basis of traditional health planning is the norm that will be applied to all beneficiaries
(like a standardized treatment, vaccination scheme, etc.), and that will produce its effects to the
extent that it is reproduced accurately, planning for HIV is based on situations which are different
according to the population group addressed, and which may change rapidly over time. Planning for
HIV therefore means devising strategies relevant to concrete situations, flexible enough to be adapt-
ed when that situation changes, and realistically taking available resources into account. A strategy
is just a means of moving from the current situation towards a stated goal, eventually through a
number of successive steps. Strategies will be discussed in more detail later in this module.
In the past, planners have tended to draw up a plan and then go out looking for money or resources
to fund itÑnot an easy exercise in a world where many development priorities must compete for
resources. A planner who thinks strategically, however, will look for initiatives that come with built-
in resources, for example by forming partnerships with private companies or institutions that can con-
tribute skills and materials to the national response to HIV. Just involving these people in formulat-
ing a strategic plan may in itself make an important contribution to a more effective response.
The rationale of strategic planning and its main characteristics have been thoroughly explained in
the Introduction to Module 1.
I.2 Different options of strategic plans
Whereas all strategic plans have a set of characteristic features in common, there are several options
to planning strategically, according to the level of detail and operationalization:
A strategic plan may be conceived as a general framework for implementing the national response.
Such a strategic framework sets fundamental principles, broad strategies, and the institutional
5
3 Strategic Plan Formulation
UNAIDS Strategic Planning Guide

---

framework, and is the basis for a subsequent formulation of more operational priority projects and
programmes.
In the second option, the strategic plan would not only include the strategic framework as defined
above, but also the more detailed strategies necessary to change the current situation, and the suc-
cessive intermediate steps needed to reach the stated objectives.
The Òstrategic plan for actionÓÑthe third optionÑtakes the level of detail still a step further: the
priority actions contain not only operational plans, but also detailed alternatives for each strategy, to
overcome potential obstacles.
To illustrate the first option, the following example lists the guiding principles contained in the
Philippine National HIV/AIDS Strategy, as it was published after many months of consultations
with the agencies involved in the national response.
Example: Philippines National HIV/AIDS Strategy
Guiding principles:
Multi-sectoral involvement is essential to national and local responses to HIV infection
The individual rights and responsibilities of people affected by HIV infection and AIDS should
be upheld
People should be empowered to prevent further HIV transmission
Care and support for persons with HIV should be integrated into existing health and social ser-
vices
Universal precautions and utmost safety should be used to minimize the risk of HIV transmis-
sion through health procedures
All HIV antibody tests should be voluntary with guaranteed confidentiality and adequate pre-
and post-test counselling
The formulation of socio-economic development policies and programmes should include con-
sideration of the impact of HIV infection/AIDS
Resources should be allocated, taking into consideration the unique vulnerabilities of various
populations affected by the HIV infection and the impact of AIDS
Continued efforts should be made to constantly improve HIV-related programmes
While this first option provides a valid framework for subsequent planning of priority strategies, it
remains quite theoretical, and may be less conducive to immediate action. The third option would
require sophisticated techniques and highly specialized human resources. The option implicitly
adopted in the present module is the second one, where a strategic framework is defined as well as
a number of priority strategies.
I.3 Using this module
As with the other modules in this series, this module describes a process which can be used by all
persons involved in HIV/AIDS planning. Though it is aimed primarily at national planners, it may
6
UNAIDS Strategic Planning Guide Strategic Plan Formulation 3

---

be used by anyone from the national programme manager to the director of a community organiz-
ation. Indeed, the entire process may be undertaken at the national level, or planners at district or
community level may also use this module to formulate their plans based on analyses conducted at
a decentralized level. Each country must choose the combination of national and decentralized plan-
ning which bests suits its needs. The advantages and disadvantages of central versus decentralized
planning will be discussed in more detail later. The process of formulating a strategy described in
this guide will not, however, differ radically regardless of the level at which planning is carried out.
I.4 Who will use the finished strategic plan?
The finished plan will, above all, guide programme managers as they implement activities that seek
to diminish the spread of HIV and its impact. It should be an indispensable reference for everyone
seeking to contribute to the national response. Governments, national and foreign donors, non-
governmental organizations (NGOs), private companies, professional associations, researchers,
and others should use the national plan as a guide to priority areas and activities for the national
response. This group of users is likely to have differing interestsÑthe more they have contributed
to formulating the strategic plan, the more likely it is to reflect their needs and to ensure that they
will be brought into partnership in a coherent, government-led national response.
7
3 Strategic Plan Formulation
UNAIDS Strategic Planning Guide

---

II. Responsibilities
II.1 Overall responsibility
There are two major groups who may be involved in national strategic plan formulation for HIV. In
most countries, the process will be coordinated by the National AIDS Programme manager under
the direction from the National AIDS Committee or other body or person with overall responsibil-
ity for AIDS policy. The National AIDS Programme managerÕs team is most likely to have been
responsible for managing the first two steps in the strategic planning processÑsituation analysis
and response review.
Elsewhere, however, governments may choose to make the national planning agency responsible
for planning for HIV as for other areas of human developmentÑthe situation analysis may point to
the most appropriate model for the country.
In some countries, considerable time and energy may be required to build up support for the very
concept of strategic planning, particularly among groups in different sectors who may feel HIV is
not their business. Strong personal or institutional leadership may be needed to drive the process.
Building support for strategic planning for HIV will involve establishing relationships, initiating
dialogue, and pressing for political commitmentÑall activities that are, in their own right, crucial
to an effective national response to the epidemic.
II.2 Strategic plan formulation team
A team appointed to formulate the strategic plan may be composed of a limited number of working
groups, each group working in one or more specific focus area.
The people involved in the formulation of the strategic plan will of course vary according to the
option chosen: whether besides the strategic framework specific priority strategies will be devel-
oped, how decentralized a process will be adopted, etc. A few principles though are valid for all con-
tingencies:
Since the government should be in the driver’s seat of the whole exercise, there should
be a solid government representation from different sectors. This will also facilitate
the integration of HIV/AIDS activities into national development plans.
It is recognized that active participation in the planning process will lead to a strong
feeling of ownership. Hence involving all key stakeholders in the plan formulation is an
early but essential step towards mobilizing resources, human as well as financial.
These include important national and international NGOs, UNAIDS and its cosponsors
(possibly through the UN Theme Group on HIV/AIDS), the main international donors,
the private sector, community organizations, people affected by HIV/AIDS, etc.
The team as a whole should have appropriate expertise in the different focus areas to
be covered, as well as in strategic planning itself. If prepared well enough in advance,
it is often possible to meet this requirement through a careful selection among the
potential participants from the stakeholders listed above.
The team(s) that conducted the situation and response analyses should be able to
make a valuable contribution to strategic plan formulation—the priorities and strat-
egies chosen will depend very much on the results of their analyses.
8
UNAIDS Strategic Planning Guide Strategic Plan Formulation 3

---