Organisation Profile

Haven Anti-AIDS Foundation is a charitable, indigenous, NGO based in Jinja district. We aim at involving and empowering children and youth to fight HIV/AIDS, illiteracy and alleviate poverty. Through participatory and advocacy activities, they use their talents to realize their potential and discover their worth. The organization hopes to create a children and youth resource centre for entrepreneurship training, talent promotion, networking and advocacy free from HIV/AIDS.
Today’s society has neglected youth and they have not been given a chance to showcase their talents. Given chance, these could be utilised to tackle youths’ challenges. Music, dance and drama, talk shows, educative shows, training workshops (entrepreneur skills), conferences, debates, voluntary counselling and testing, and other community empowerment activities have enabled children and youth vulnerable groups to participate in the socio-economic development. We have employed these activities to work with these vulnerable groups.

Since 2008, the organization has involved and empowered children and youth in HIV/AIDS prevention, awareness and sensitization programmes, poverty alleviation programmes, educational programmes and offered orphanage and foster care to orphans and vulnerable children.

Achievements
•    An orphan project where orphaned, destitute and vulnerable children obtain education under our AIDChild Development Project.
•    Free HIV/AIDS prevention training to youth in secondary schools, tertiary institutions and universities through the HIV/AIDS prevention and sensitization project.
•    In the Youth Development Project young people have gained a lot of entrepreneur skills and many have been able to start small businesses to sustain themselves.
•    Talent promotion has been seen through the Haven Dance project.

Challenges
•    Inadequate resources in terms of scholastic materials for use during the trainings in schools and other institutions.
•    Lack of adequate funding to support our activities in schools and communities.
•    Lack of enough transport and communication means
Future strategies, directions and needs
•    Build a children and youth friendly resource centre that will facilitate entrepreneurship training, talent promotion, networking and advocacy activities
•    Strengthen all our programmes to increase the number of children and youth reached
•    Intensify our collaborations with other NGOs to increase our presence in different parts of Uganda
•    Strengthening our projects aiming at fighting HIV/AIDS, poverty and illiteracy.
•    Empower the staff team and volunteers through short term courses, development days, retreat and other opportunities.