Providing quality health care requires access to continuous patient data which developing countries often lack. A panel of medical informatics specialists, HIV clinicians, and program managers suggests a minimum dataset for supporting the management and monitoring HIV patients with HIV and their care programs in developing countries. The proposed minimum dataset consists of data for registration and scheduling, monitoring and improving practice management, and describing clinical encounters and clinical care. Data should be numeric or coded using standard definitions and minimal free text. To enhance accuracy, efficiency, and availability, data should be recorded electronically by those generating them. Data elements must be sufficiently detailed to support clinical algorithms/guidelines and aggregation into broader categories for consumption by higher level users (e.g., national and international health care agencies). The proposed minimum dataset will evolve over time as funding increases, care protocols change, and additional tests and treatments become available for HIV-infected patients in developing countries.