HOPE projects

AIDS is a major cause of death after malaria, and it is estimated that over 1 million Zambians are living with HIV/ AIDS. The epidemic has had a very devastating effect to the country at family, community and national level.

HIV/AIDS has impacted people’s productivity. Given that the vast majority of Zambians’ livelihoods are through agriculture-related employment, the epidemic has exerted a serious impact on agricultural productivity as those who are infected and bed-ridden are too weak to cultivate crops for consumption and for sale. There is thus food insecurity, nutritional deficiency, and poor income in most households for people living with HIV and AIDS (PLWHA). Furthermore, those that are affected by the epidemic spend time away from the fields to take care of the AIDS-patients at home or in hospitals.   

There has also been an increase in the number of AIDS- orphaned children, with about 1.5 million children having lost either both or one of their parents to the epidemic. Most of these orphans have been absorbed into the extended families upon death of their parents. However, extended families have been stretched to such extremes that they are unable to cater for the daily needs of these orphans. The families are also mostly headed by the aged who do not have the muscle to provide for all the family needs. This leaves the orphans with torn-out hearts and shattered dreams, uncertain of what the future holds for them, as they are mostly unable to fend for their livelihood and educational needs.

Thus, HOPE projects aim to stop the spread of HIV and AIDS through information, education, and counselling programmes. The projects provide support to PLWHA and their families through training in positive living and economic strengthening. 

The projects operate in three main lines that include health services, outreach programme, and opinion forming. Through these programme lines, the HOPE projects facilitate voluntary counselling and testing, fight stigma and discrimination, provide food supplements to the chronically ill HIV/AIDS patients, provide direct support to orphans and vulnerable children, and reinforce networking between the local health structures and people who are HIV positive to thereby assist in the treatment of opportunistic infections such as TB.

Through the positive living training, the projects promote nutritional gardening and home hygiene and campaign against gender-based violence.  

HOPE projects also strengthen the economies for people living with HIV and AIDS through mobilisation of support groups to engage in various income generating activities. The projects provide pass-on loans of livestock and grants to support the nutritional needs for people living with HIV. TB Treatment Supporters and ART Adherence Supporters are also provided with revolving loans in order to support their livelihood as they provide care to the infected.

Members of the support groups are trained in livestock management and in business entrepreneurship and management in order for them to efficiently run their small businesses and to boost their income.

Besides working with support groups, ART Advocates and TB Treatment Supporters, the projects also work with youths, health centres and civil society organisations in order to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS, to involve and raise the capacity of the communities to fight the epidemic and to care for people living with HIV and their families.

Operational areas
The first HOPE project started in Ndola in 1996. HOPE Ndola is now a well-established project where we have gained a lot of experiences in running programmes to assist those living with HIV and to fight the spread of the virus.

HOPE projects are currently in the following districts:- Kabwe and Kapiri-Mposhi in Central Province; Kaoma, Mongu and Senanga in Western Province; and Ndola in Copperbelt Province.

For the latest achievements of the HOPE Projects, click here to download the DAPP annual report for 2010.