It's feared that prevention measures and advocacy for those living with HIV in the Pacific could disappear as a result of the Pacific Islands Aids Foundation closing.
The foundation is shutting down due to lack of funds as it has been unable to attract new donor support after the New Zealand government withdrew its core funding in 2011.
The founder of the Pacific Islands Aids Foundation, Maire Bopp, says the immediate impact of the closure is that a group of HIV positive people and their families will be left without a strong regional voice.
"That then will lead to an absence of advocacy and visibility of HIV and its issues. At a human level, the loss of advocacy could imply that HIV prevention will slow down and potentially disappear and the issue around HIV treatment will regress."
Maire Bopp.
MFAT says it determined that a more effective use of New Zealand's funding would be to support the Pacific Regional Strategy on HIV and other STIs, and PIAF was eligible to apply for funding through this mechanism.
