mothers2mothers to Lead Large-Scale, USAID-Supported Project to Improve Lives of Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children in Mpumalanga, South Africa

mothers2mothers to Lead Large-Scale, USAID-Supported Project to Improve Lives of Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children in Mpumalanga, South Africa

Cape Town, South Africa – The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has selected mothers2mothers (m2m) to deliver a major project serving orphans and other vulnerable children and adolescents (OVCA) affected by HIV in Mpumalanga, South Africa. The five-year award under the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is valued at just under US$10 million. The program will be known as CHAMP (Children and Adolescents Are My Priority). m2m will direct the program with support from partners Grassroot Soccer South Africa and Zoë-Life. CHAMP is being formally launched at an event in Mbombela this week, attended by senior figures from USAID, the Mpumalanga Departments of Social Development and Health, and m2m.

“We are thrilled to have secured this opportunity to use our proven peer mentor model to ensure that orphans and other vulnerable children and adolescents in Mpumalanga are protected from HIV and its societal effects, and given the best possible chances in life,” said Frank Beadle de Palomo, m2m President and CEO. “Collaboration is at the heart of our work at m2m, and so we are delighted that CHAMP brings the opportunity to work closely with the Mpumalanga Departments of Social Development and Health, and to bring on board strong consortium partners Grassroots Soccer and Zoë-Life,” he added.

Over the last 30 years of the global HIV epidemic, an estimated 17 million children have lost one or both parents due to AIDS, and four million of these children live in South Africa. Despite some decline in HIV adult prevalence worldwide and increased access to treatment, the number of children and adolescents affected by HIV remains very high. According to the South African National AIDS Council, fewer than half of HIV-infected children in Mpumalanga are on anti-retroviral treatment.

Working in close partnership with the provincial Departments of Social Development and Health, and health-care providers in the province, CHAMP partners will find and identify OVCA and ensure that they  get them into care to receive  medication and comprehensive ongoing support they need. CHAMP intends to reach more than 57,000 beneficiaries, of whom at least 20 percent will be children and adolescents living with HIV, as they are highly vulnerable to health, societal and developmental deficits.