The PEPFAR cut exemption - will it be too little, too late for SA?

CapeTalk's John Maytham speaks to AIDS activist and co-founder of the Treatment Action Campaign Mark Heywood.

Listen below:

The US Senate has voted to spare the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) from a proposed $400 million slash. 

But what does this political reprieve mean for South Africa’s HIV programmes on the ground?

"I think we have to welcome it, of course, but I also fear that it's cold comfort because we don't know how the $400 million is going to be reinserted into public healthcare systems across the globe..."

- Mark Heywood, AIDS Activist

Heywood points out that what Trump did earlier this year has already broken the systems that were in place to disperse the funding needed for essential healthcare initiatives.

"Specialised clinics have been closed down, that cater to vulnerable groups... 8,000 specialist important jobs have been lost... we're seeing emerging evidence of declines in HIV testing, declines in CD4 testing, and we're seeing declines in the number of people being initiated onto treatment."

- Mark Heywood, AIDS Activist

"I'd like to be excited about this, but I would urge great circumspection because it will take a miracle to get this money redeployed to the people who need it."

- Mark Heywood, AIDS Activist

RELATED: Pepfar: Aid or influence? The power play behind US funding

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the discussion.