About

Children and young people, particularly girls and young women, continue to be disproportionately affected by HIV, AIDS, poor sexual and reproductive health, unemployment and gender-based violence.

NACOSA implements South Africa’s largest youth programme. The My Journey programme supports girls and young women to take charge of their health and wellness by providing HIV prevention choices and wellbeing services in their communities. Reaching 384,284 girls and young women, the programme aims to reduce HIV by increasing HIV testing, condom use, and the use of PrEP products and increasing the number of HIV positive young women on care. My Journey is a national programme funded by the Global Fund through NACOSA and implemented in communities by local organisations. My Journey does not exclude boys and young men but rather focuses limited resources on those most at-risk of HIV.

Young people face a number of complex and intersecting challenges to their health and wellbeing. 3.8 million young people aged 15-24 are not in employment, education or training and youth unemployment stands at 60% (Stats SA, 2025). NACOSA is therefore proud to be implementing the Social Employment Fund – a Presidential Employment Stimulus fund aimed at tackling unemployment through strengthening partnerships with social and civic partners, enabling them to create ‘whole of society’ initiatives for greater scale and greater impact across South Africa. With the support of the Social Employment Fund, NACOSA is deploying over 1,000 young people to host community based organisations. These grassroots health mobilisers and GBV ambassadors will connect communities, particularly the youth, to HIV and GBV prevention and care services and build understanding of these critical issues.

Young people are especially vulnerable to HIV and GBV if they are not in education, employment or training, NACOSA works with communities to empower and support them on their journey to a safe, happy and healthy future. Economic strengthening and livelihoods interventions include work readiness and financial literacy skills, training, work and entrepreneurship opportunities as well as savings, food security and mentoring support. Known as GLO – Grow, Learn, Own – this approach is implemented across a number of NACOSA’s programmes.

NACOSA has worked with orphaned and vulnerable children since 2011 and until recently implemented a programme to prevent HIV, AIDS and GBV in orphans and vulnerable children and young women, funded by PEPFAR. The programme supported vulnerable children, young people and their families to prevent and reduce the impact of HIV and violence in communities.

South Africa has some of the highest rates of gender-based violence in the world which largely impacts on women and children and is one of the main drivers of our HIV epidemic. NACOSA believes that communities have a vital role to play in preventing and responding to violence against women, children and the LGBTQIA+ community.

NACOSA’s Community-based Violence Prevention and Response Programme, previously funded by PEPFAR worked to change harmful attitudes and promote protective family and community norms. With a focus on girls and young women, the programme was part of DREAMS (Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored and Safe) and also provided survivors of violence with comprehensive post-violence care services. NACOSA supported the services of 15 community organisations in integrated post-violence care centres, providing trauma containment, preventing HIV and STIs and increasing access to psychosocial support services for victims of sexual violence.

The Gender-Based Violence in Mining Communities project strengthens services offered by GBV facilities, empowers women and young people to become economically independent and builds capacity, networks and community awareness to sustainably prevent and respond to GBV. The project is implemented by NACOSA in mining communities in the North West and Limpopo, funded by the Tshikululu Trust and made possible by Valterra Platinum.

Key populations are those who are most affected by HIV, AIDS and STIs and who are routinely left behind – marginalised, criminalised, stigmatised and discriminated against.

Women who use drugs are more vulnerable to HIV and other blood borne infections due to patriarchal drug culture, intersectionality with sex work and gender-based stigma. They also experience higher rates of depression and anxiety, suicidal tendencies, isolation and general psychological distress. Our Amaqhawekazi Women Who Use Drugs project aims to remove structural barriers and promote psychosocial wellness through peer educators in Gauteng and is funded through a ViiV Healthcare Positive Action grant.

Until recently, NACOSA implemented the Global Fund People Who Use Drugs programme which deployed peers to reduce human rights, social and structural barriers to HIV, Hepatitis, STI and TB prevention and care, as well as strengthen the advocacy and national commitment for programming. NACOSA also managed a peer-led combination prevention Sex Work Programme which successfully piloted an economic strengthening intervention for sex workers.

Human Rights interventions, including community mobilisation and advocacy, strengthening the delivery of legal support services, mainstreams the reduction of harmful gender norms and addresses stigma and discrimination across key and vulnerable populations programming.

Community organisations and structures are powerful forces for change. NACOSA promotes networking and dialogue and helps to build systems that support the community response to HIV, AIDS, TB, GBV and other health and social challenges. NACOSA Learning has a capacity building methodology, training and tools developed and refined over 20 years.

NACOSA builds the capacity of community organisations – with capacity assessments, training and mentoring – and manages a community mobilisation and demand creation programme for emerging organisations, funded by the Global Fund.

Our Community-Led Monitoring work uses community-level data to monitor services to improve access and uptake. NACOSA is currently working with the Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness on the Community Household Assessment for the Community Oriented Primary Care project to understand community support systems in Cape Town.

With funding from the International Treatment Preparedness Coalition (ITPC), NACOSA is implementing a community monitoring and engagement project using community data and intelligence to inform country-level advocacy and engagement. The project aims to monitor service disruptions, elevate community expertise, and drive advocacy that ensures equitable access to care during critical funding transitions.

Community organisations plug critical service delivery gaps, particularly in under-served communities, but they face significant challenges including a lack of consistent funding, governance, leadership and technical capacity challenges.

Networking is core to NACOSA’s history and DNA. As a network of organisations and activists, we were part of a movement to draft South Africa’s first national strategic plan for AIDS. With our network of community based organisations, NACOSA mobilises resources and advocates for flexible funding, capacity building support, and enables organisations to share and learn from each other and have a stronger voice in the HIV, AIDS, TB and GBV response.