Identifying opportunities for expanding SAMBA use to Faith-based and other organisations supporting HIV monitoring in treatment programmes in Sub-Saharan Africa and Eastern Europe

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"DRW has developed SAMBA, a nucleic acid test system that can be used at the point of care in rural, remote locations to test for HIV viral load for therapy monitoring and early HIV infection diagnosis in infants born from HIV+ mothers to allow for early treatment. SAMBA instrument and tests are CE-marked, allowing use in Europe and Africa. DRW needs to develop the market and is working with ministries of health in several African countries and a hospital in Ukraine to implement SAMBA. In Africa, challenges associated with governments are proving to be a slow and circuitous process. However, there are private organisations working on the ground and in need of appropriate tools to test for HIV in remote, decentralised settings. DRW is already working with Médecins Sans Frontières and this project proposes to identify and quantify additional opportunities in private health organisations, such as faith-based health providers and non-governmental organisations, while continuing to work with government organisations.An estimated 100,000 faith-based organisations (FBO) in Africa provide health care to the poor and vulnerable and may provide 20% of global HIV/AIDS work. In Uganda, FBOs provide \>25% of all health services and private non-for-profits (including FBOs) account for 41% of hospitals and 22% of lower level health facilities. These organisations are highly motivated to provide health care to people in critical need but who cannot afford it. DRW proposes to identify and engage with such organisations in African and Eastern European markets, which are currently inaccessible, and develop a business strategy for delivering SAMBA to those markets. The information gathered will be used to develop an appropriate and sustainable strategy for supplying tests to these organisations. The following information will be researched: a) identify countries, organisations and sites for subsequent implementation in 'Phase 2'; b) determine number of tests needed per year; c) determine price acceptability; d) understand test site environment, facilities and users; e) update market analysis including market size, funding mechanisms and sustainability f) update and expand DRW's commercialisation strategy based on project Phase 1 outcomes and g) if time and resources allow, perform trial implementation or training for SAMBA. Determining additional implementation channels in addition to large government programmes will expand the use of SAMBA, impacting more people's health and allowing DRW to exploit SAMBA beneficially, thereby supporting testing needs and creating a sustainable future for the company's work and the SAMBA product."