The faith community is already playing a leading role in the fight against HIV/AIDS on the ground. Faith-based groups serve millions around the world, providing care, treatment, and support to people living with HIV/AIDS, promoting prevention and awareness messages, and empowering vulnerable groups. From interfaith candlelight memorials to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS in Haiti, to Buddhist nuns and monks providing palliative care in Thailand, to faith-based organizations distributing antiretrovirals in Kenya—faith communities and faith-based organizations can lend critical support to national multi-sector strategies to fight HIV/AIDS.

However, faith-based contributions towards combating HIV/AIDS are often fragmented and not well-documented. CIFA aims to:

• Highlight best practices by faith based organizations, identify learnings and opportunities that will benefit other groups
• Organize collaborative opportunities for faith communities that will build on strengths and create new opportunities for both service and support,
• Increase the capacity of the faith sector to address HIV/AIDS.
• Address trends and new information in prevention and treatment in the context of faith communities
• Provide information to faith based organizations to help them identify public and private support and to help them mobilize their own communties