The Challenge 

In Uganda, an estimated 1.5 million people are living with HIV, 176,000 of whom are children. Although Uganda has made significant progress in reducing new HIV infections, data show that HIV prevalence has been increasing in recent years and AIDS remains the leading cause of death among adults. Women account for the majority of Ugandans living with HIV. 

The transmission of HIV is preventable with the right anti-retroviral therapies and the right support. However, high levels of poverty in rural areas, combined with a lack of health infrastructure, prevent over 40% of pregnant women from accessing vital maternal, pre- and neonatal health services. Ensuring that pregnant mothers with HIV and their babies have adequate healthcare and support to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission is imperative to ending the AIDS epidemic in Uganda.  

The solutions we’re proposing

W4’s field project, mothers2mothers (m2m), is revolutionizing the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission in Uganda through its innovative Community Mentor Mothers program. The program reaches out to poor pregnant women and pregnant women in remote rural areas who are living with HIV to provide them with crucial, life-saving care: educating women about prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission (MTCT); providing the women with anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment options; and providing medical and emotional support during pregnancy and after childbirth.

The innovative program recruits newly-delivered moms who are HIV positive, and trains them as “Mentor Mothers” who can provide other HIV-affected women in their communities with support and guidance. Mentor Mothers counsel young, pregnant mothers every day about issues such as medications that are available, nutrition, exclusive feeding for their babies, dealing with domestic violence, indeed all the things that they are concerned with but usually cannot discuss with anyone. The program also provides the expectant mothers with healthy, hot meals, often the only nutritional meal that they might get that day.

The impact of giving

By funding the Community Mentor Mothers program - in part or in full – you can help save lives and play a key role in the groundbreaking work to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission and eradicate HIV/AIDS in Uganda. 

Your contribution will empower capable young mothers to obtain healthcare training through the Community Mentor Mothers program. Your donation helps to save lives and also provides women with a vital income, health education, and access to a support network that boosts their socioeconomic outlook.

Give to this program today and enable women living with HIV to provide life-saving services for other vulnerable and neglected young mothers living with HIV, and their babies.