[Federal Register: May 11, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 91)]
[Notices]               
[Page 26112]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr11my04-100]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[Program Announcement 04194]

 
Strengthening the Center for Evaluation of Public Health 
Interventions (CEPHI) in Zimbabwe; Notice of Intent to Fund Single 
Eligibility Award

A. Purpose

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announces the 
intent to fund fiscal year (FY) 2004 funds for a cooperative agreement 
program to strengthen the capacity for supporting excellence in 
monitoring and evaluating the public health response to the HIV/AIDS 
epidemic in Zimbabwe. The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number 
for this program is 93.283.

B. Eligible Applicant

    Assistance will be provided only to the University of Zimbabwe 
(UZ), with the assistance targeted to the University's School of 
Medicine. The UZ/CEPHI was established in 2002, with the support of CDC 
through a cooperative agreement. UZ maintains the only graduate public 
health training program in the country, and, as such, includes faculty 
with specific expertise in monitoring and evaluation and in training. 
UZ also formed an Informatics Unit in 2002, with the support of CDC 
through a cooperative agreement, which includes computer training 
facilities, and faculty and staff with expertise in computer 
application development and utilization of existing applications. This 
Informatics Unit serves both to support UZ students and faculty, and 
also as a resource to national programs and organizations. The purpose 
of this agreement is to build upon the initial successes of these 
programs, and to support them to function at greater capacity.
    Zimbabwe is among the countries in the world most affected by HIV/
AIDS: HIV prevalence is estimated to be approximately 25 percent; there 
has been a ten-fold increase in the number of TB cases; and up to 35 
percent of the children may be orphaned by AIDS at the end of this 
decade. There are increasing amounts of international funds being made 
available to HIV/AIDS programs in Zimbabwe, such as those from the 
Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria. These funds also demand high 
standards of monitoring and evaluation of HIV/AIDS activities. At the 
same time, the public health response to the epidemic in Zimbabwe is 
challenged by insufficient manpower and expertise in the Zimbabwe 
public health system. Support for CEPHI and the associated Informatics 
Unit aims to enhance training and capacity for monitoring the response 
to the epidemic as well as to improve efficiency and quality of 
programs through optimal use of technology.

C. Funding

    Approximately $125,000 is available in FY 2004 to fund this award. 
It is expected that the award will begin on or before July 15, 2004, 
and will be made for a 12-month budget period within a project period 
of up to three years. Funding estimates may change.

D. Where to Obtain Additional Information

    For general comments or questions about this announcement, contact: 
Technical Information Management, CDC Procurement and Grants Office, 
2920 Brandywine Road, Atlanta, GA 30341-4146, Telephone: 770-488-2700.
    For program technical assistance, contact: Shannon Hader, M.D., 
Director, CDC Zimbabwe, 38 Samora Machel Avenue, Harare, Zimbabwe, 
Telephone: +263 4 796040, E-mail: haders@zimcdc.co.zw.
    For budget assistance, contact: Shirley Wynn, Grants Management 
Specialist, CDC Procurement and Grants Office, 2920 Brandywine Road, 
Atlanta, GA 30341, Telephone: 770-488-2696, E-mail: zbx6@cdc.gov.

    Dated: May 5, 2004.
William P. Nichols,
Acting Director, Procurement and Grants Office, Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention.
[FR Doc. 04-10621 Filed 5-10-04; 8:45 am]

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