EACH ONE OF US HAS A STORY ABOUT A WOMAN WHO CHANGED OUR LIFE.

Whether it be the guiding light of a mother, a phone call from a friend at just the right moment, or a small act of kindness from a stranger—we have all known the power of women to change lives. 

This power has certainly shaped our organisation. 

We were founded in 2001 in response to the HIV/AIDS pandemic in South Africa, with a clear focus—to eliminate the transmission of HIV between mother and child, reduce maternal death, and combat stigma and discrimination. 

But it’s HOW we proposed to do this that made us special... 

Because our approach centered on the power of one mother sharing her story with another mother, her peer, connecting through their lived experience and shared understanding. 

Forming a relationship that allows our professional, salaried health workers—known as Mentor Mothers—to deliver health services, support, and education in a completely unique way. 

A way that not only gets people into care, but keeps them there and on any treatment they need, long-term. 

Over the past two decades, as the needs of the mothers and the communities we serve have changed, we have responded... 

We’ve expanded WHERE we deliver health services. 

Care can now be accessed when and where it’s needed most, whether that’s in a health facility, door-to-door in the community, or online through eServices. 

We’ve evolved WHO we deliver services to. 

Our services encompass the whole family, from expectant mothers, to newborns, to growing children, to adolescents, to male partners—while always remaining true to what makes us special: our peer-to-peer approach. 

We’ve expanded WHICH services we deliver. 

As well as supporting an entire family’s health needs, Mentor Mothers are now trained to support even more preventable conditions—including tuberculosis, hypertension, and cervical cancer. All of which are common where we work, and more serious for people living with HIV. 

BECAUSE we are so uniquely in tune with communities’ needs, and BECAUSE our model is proven to keep people in care, we are no longer only an HIV-focused charity... 

Mentor Mothers are now delivering fully integrated primary health care services to their communities. 

THAT is the power of women to change lives. 

WHERE WE WORK

  • Angola

  • Ghana

  • Lesotho

  • Malawi

  • Mozambique

  • Nigeria

  • South Africa

  • Tanzania

  • Uganda

  • Zambia