statistics and trends in U.S. HIV/AIDS

The following section highlights key statistics and trends in U.S. HIV/AIDS philanthropy
up to and including the year 2000. This provides an update, and in some cases a
revision, of the FCAA publication Voices from the Field: Remobilizing HIV/AIDS
Philanthropy for the 21st Century, which contains qualitative data on some of the most
current elements and trends in HIV/AIDS philanthropy46 (See Appendix I for Executive
Summary of Voices from the Field).
HIV/AIDS philanthropy is continually shifting as private foundations and corporate
grantmakers move in and out of the HIV arena, re-focus their efforts, re-align their
funding priorities, and support various domestic and international programs. As a
result, this information is constantly in a state of flux. However, the data presented here
can serve as a starting point in a review and assessment of the current state of U.S.
private HIV/AIDS grantmaking.
Important Facts and Figures At a Glance
• A new analysis by Funders Concerned About AIDS conducted in 2002 reveals
that estimated grants from U.S. foundations and corporations for HIV/AIDS
issues, domestically and globally, increased significantly from approximately
$76.1 million in 1999 to at least $312.4 million in 2000, representing a stunning
increase of over 300%.47
• Support for domestic U.S. HIV/AIDS efforts is no longer in obvious decline as it
was for some years in the 1990’s, but it appears, at best, stagnant.
• While HIV/AIDS is primarily a global epidemic, with 95% of people with HIV
living in the world’s poorest countries, 83.7% of U.S. foundation funding in
2000 was directed to local HIV/AIDS efforts inside the U.S. Approximately
16.3% of overall U.S.-based HIV/AIDS funding supported international
HIV/AIDS efforts in 2002 (90% of this amount WAS granted to organizations in
the United States for work or in some cases distribution abroad).48
• Philanthropic giving to international HIV/AIDS efforts is clearly at its highest
level ever, particularly with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation leading the
way with several multi-million dollar grants in the period from 1999 to 2001.4