TAFU programme is building the capacity of community structures
Last updated on: 06 March 2024
One achievement that I’m most proud of from the TAFU program is building the capacity of community structures. This is very critical, because the community structures especially the expert clients, are very supportive of the peers. Says Joselyne Mwabadde of the National Forum of People living with HIV and AIDS in Uganda (NAFOPHANU), one of the valuable implementing partners in the Towards an AIDS free Generation in Uganda (TAFU) programme in the past eight years. She reflects on the crucial role of community structures in ensuring children living with HIV have access to the care they need. Watch her interview!
“NAFOPHANU has been implementing TAFU that is the towards an AIDS free generation in Uganda program for the last eight years. We have been working through the PLHIV networks, that is, the expert clients. These structures have been instrumental in supporting the identification, the referral and follow up of lost clients, especially the children and pregnant women. One achievement that I’m most proud of from the TAFU program is building the capacity of community structures. This is very critical, because the community structures especially the expert clients, are very supportive of the peers. This is because they are living in the communities where the children living with HIV also live. And this has helped the TAFU program to realize its goal of increasing enrollment of children living with HIV into care, simply because the expert clients have been able to educate the community about what paediatric HIV is.”
About the TAFU programme
The Towards an AIDS Free Generation in Uganda programme was Aidsfonds’ first paediatric HIV community intervention programme co-created with Ugandan community-based partner organisations. The program trained community resource persons and village health teams to identify children living with HIV, refer them to health facilities and follow up on them after they are enrolled in HIV care. Based on the successes and learnings of TAFU in Uganda, Aidsfonds scaled paediatric HIV programming to four other countries between 2018-2021: Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mozambique and Nigeria. These five programmes, co-developed with partner organisations form the basis for the Aidsfonds Kids to Care model for community-based paediatric HIV programming.
The Towards an AIDS Free Generation in Uganda (TAFU) programme was Aidsfonds’ first paediatric HIV community intervention programme. The programme trained up community health workers to identify HIV positive children, and link individuals to care and ongoing support. The programme was co-created through community leadership and engagement with key stakeholders, building on community knowledge of the needs of children living with HIV. Towards an AIDS Free Generation in Uganda changed the way that community-based paediatric HIV services were delivered.
Rutgers and Aidsfonds – Soa Aids Nederland Join Forces to Advance Sexual Health
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Today, 1 July 2026, Rutgers and Aidsfonds – Soa Aids Nederland have formally entered into an administrative merger. Under a shared leadership structure, we are working together towards a single strategic direction for sexual health in the Netherlands and around the world. As an important step towards a full legal merger, this development strengthens our joint commitment to health, wellbeing and human rights.
Our new organisation is dedicated to creating a world in which everyone can make free and safe choices about their bodies, relationships and sexuality, and where no one dies of AIDS.
“If we’re not there now, we’ll lose the progress we fought so hard for”
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A crucial moment in the fight against AIDS: world leaders are gathering in New York on Monday and Tuesday for the UN High-Level Meeting on HIV and AIDS. Aidsfonds is present to increase pressure on governments. It is essential that governments commit to an inclusive HIV response with adequate funding.
