that Ministry’s Strategic plan for the health sector. In 2001, the Government of Tanzania launched a progressive HIV/AIDS Policy (the National Multi-Sector Framework on HIV and AIDS), which addresses among other things, routine HIV testing of antenatal mothers. Donors are providing greater funding to the national response to HIV/AIDS, in particular through the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the World Bank, bilateral donors and the UN system. However, despite increased funding the overall response remains relatively slow and small scale due to a significant lack of capacity to absorb and utilize the extra funds. In Zanzibar, the Zanzibar AIDS Commission (ZAC) has prepared a Situation and Response Analysis Report in 2003 as first step towards a preparation of a Strategic Plan. To date, the national response has been weak. Other initiatives taken by the Government include the development of: · National Policy Guidelines for Reproductive and Child Health Services; · Standards for Adolescent Friendly Reproductive Health Services; · Reproductive and Child Health Strategy 2005-2010; · An overview of the Tanzania Reproductive and Child Health Communication Strategy 2001-2005; · National Adolescent Health and Development Strategy 2004-2008; · National curriculum for service providers on reproductive health; · Integration of youth friendly services in the nurse’s pre-service training. The Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar adopted the Zanzibar National HIV Strategic Plan (2004/05 to 2008/09) in 2005 (ZNSP). The ZNSP not only recognises the importance of responding to HIV, but also the importance of tracking the progress with implementing the national HIV response, ZAC is mandated to coordinate the implementation of the national response to HIV in Zanzibar National HIV Strategic Plan. ZAC and its partners developed a National Multi sectoral HIV monitoring and evaluation system. The monitoring and evaluation system was launched in 2006 and consists of a number of components: a two-way strategic information flow from sub-national to 43