Transforming the Lives of Adolescent Mothers Living with HIV: Reflections from the VIIV Project

At COWLHA, we believe that every individual, regardless of their health status, deserves access to comprehensive care, support, and the opportunity to thrive. Over the past three years, we embarked on a transformative mission to uplift and empower adolescent mothers living with HIV, ensuring they have access to the health services and support they deserve. Through the โ€œ๐‘จ๐’…๐’๐’๐’†๐’”๐’„๐’†๐’๐’• ๐‘ด๐’๐’•๐’‰๐’†๐’“๐’” ๐’˜๐’Š๐’•๐’‰ ๐‘ฏ๐‘ฐ๐‘ฝ ๐’‡๐’๐’“ ๐‘ฐ๐’Ž๐’‘๐’“๐’๐’—๐’†๐’… ๐‘ฏ๐’†๐’‚๐’๐’•๐’‰โ€ project, supported by VIIV Healthcare and MANERELA+, weโ€™ve been working in the districts of Dedza and Phalombe to empower, break barriers and create brighter futures for these young people.

๐€ ๐•๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐Ž๐Ÿ ๐‡๐จ๐ฉ๐ž ๐š๐ง๐ ๐‚๐ก๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž

When we launched this project, we knew the road ahead wouldnโ€™t be easy. The three-year project, which began in 2021, was designed to address the unique challenges faced by adolescent mothers and their children aged 10-24 years. These adolescent mothers, often overlooked by society, face immense challenges. From stigma and discrimination to limited access to sexual reproductive health (SRH) services, their journey is one of resilience and determination. By 2024, we set out to ensure these young women had access to life-changing sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services and comprehensive knowledge on HIV. And weโ€™re proud to say that over the course of the project, we reached ๐Ÿ•,๐Ÿ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ– ๐ข๐ง๐๐ข๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ฎ๐š๐ฅ๐ฌ with vital HIV and SRHR information and support services.

๐’๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐ž๐ฌ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ˆ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐š๐œ๐ญ ๐“๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐“๐จ๐ฎ๐œ๐ก ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐’๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ

๐Ÿ. ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐๐จ๐ฐ๐ž๐ซ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐๐ž๐ž๐ซ-๐“๐จ-๐๐ž๐ž๐ซ ๐Œ๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฌ๐ก๐ข๐ฉ

Imagine being a young mother, living with HIV, uncertain of the future. Now, imagine having someone by your sideโ€”someone who understands your journey, who can guide and support you. This is what our peer mentorship program has done for 30 adolescent mothers and fathers. These young leaders have become beacons of hope in their communities. Their training in treatment literacy, family planning, and gender-based violence (GBV) has sparked a 30% rise in adolescents seeking family planning services. More than that, theyโ€™ve managed to help link ๐Ÿ–๐Ÿ—๐Ÿ– ๐ข๐ง๐๐ข๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ฎ๐š๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฅ๐ข๐Ÿ๐ž-๐ฌ๐š๐ฏ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐‡๐ˆ๐• ๐ญ๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ญ๐ฆ๐ž๐ง๐ญ and ensuring ๐Ÿ,๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ—๐Ÿ— ๐ข๐ง๐๐ข๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ฎ๐š๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐ซ๐ž๐œ๐ž๐ข๐ฏ๐ž ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐จ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ญ๐ฆ๐ž๐ง๐ญ ๐š๐๐ก๐ž๐ซ๐ž๐ง๐œ๐ž.

๐Ÿ. ๐’๐š๐Ÿ๐ž ๐’๐ฉ๐š๐œ๐ž๐ฌ ๐“๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐‚๐ก๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž ๐‹๐ข๐ฏ๐ž๐ฌ

Thereโ€™s something profound about having a space where you feel safe, a place where you can share your experiences, ask questions, and find support without fear of judgement. This is exactly what our safe hubs have provided. These hubs, supported by health care workers providing SRH services, have increased family planning uptake and created lasting community connections. Despite the devastation of Cyclone Freddy, which affected so many of the young mothers we work with, community leaders have stepped up. Theyโ€™ve donated land, firewood and brick ovens ensuring that the construction of new HIV support group hubs continue. A testament to the strength of the human spirit and the importance of local ownership and sustainability.


๐˜•๐˜ˆ๐˜”๐˜‰๐˜ˆ๐˜ก๐˜– ๐˜ˆ๐˜•๐˜‹ ๐˜’๐˜ˆ๐˜“๐˜๐˜•๐˜‹๐˜Œ ๐˜๐˜œ๐˜‰๐˜š ๐˜Š๐˜–๐˜•๐˜š๐˜›๐˜™๐˜œ๐˜Š๐˜›๐˜๐˜–๐˜• ๐˜œ๐˜•๐˜‹๐˜Œ๐˜™ ๐˜ž๐˜ˆ๐˜ 

๐Ÿ‘. ๐…๐ข๐ง๐š๐ง๐œ๐ข๐š๐ฅ ๐ˆ๐ง๐๐ž๐ฉ๐ž๐ง๐๐ž๐ง๐œ๐ž ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐–๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ญ๐จ ๐‘๐ž๐›๐ฎ๐ข๐ฅ๐

Through the creation of Village Savings and Loan (VSL) groups, 60 adolescent mothers have learned the power of saving and investing. While the floods caused by Cyclone Freddy set back some of these efforts, the project planted seeds of resilience. Empowering these young women to rebuild, to rise, and to continue striving for a better tomorrow. Additionally, 20 pigs were distributed to 120 adolescent girls and young mothers, with the goal of promoting income generation through livestock farming. This pass-on initiative offers vital sustenance and economic benefits, empowering these young women to support themselves and their families.

๐Ÿ’. ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐  ๐๐จ๐ญ๐ก ๐๐จ๐๐ฒ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐’๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ

We understand that health is holistic. Itโ€™s not just about treatmentโ€”itโ€™s about nutrition, mental well-being, and creating a nurturing environment for both mothers and their children. Through our training programs, 50 adolescent parents have gained vital knowledge on food security and nutrition, allowing them to prepare healthier meals for themselves and their children, and thus supporting the effectiveness of HIV treatment. Itโ€™s a small shift, but one that has made a world of difference in their daily lives.

๐Ÿ“. ๐๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐‚๐ก๐š๐ข๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐‡๐š๐ซ๐ฆ๐Ÿ๐ฎ๐ฅ ๐‚๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐š๐ฅ ๐๐จ๐ซ๐ฆ๐ฌ

Thereโ€™s no easy way to change harmful cultural practices, but with support and determination, weโ€™re doing it. Through our community awareness campaigns, weโ€™ve tackled practices that put young girls at risk. Practices such as โ€œKugula Ufa,” where stepfathers exploited adolescent girls, are now being actively challenged by community and traditional leaders, creating safer environments for adolescent mothers and their children.

๐‚๐ก๐š๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ž๐ง๐ ๐ž๐ฌ, ๐‹๐ž๐ฌ๐ฌ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐„๐ฆ๐›๐ซ๐š๐œ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐…๐ฎ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ž

This journey hasnโ€™t been without its challenges. Cyclone Freddy was a devastating blow, affecting everything from the construction of hubs to the financial progress of our VSL groups. But in the face of adversity, these young mothers have shown incredible resilience. With the support of their communities and the determination of COWLHAโ€™s team, theyโ€™ve continued to push forward.

Weโ€™ve also learned that real change requires partnership. It requires the commitment of traditional leaders, religious leaders, healthcare providers, and every individual in the community. Together, weโ€™ve built something that will last far beyond the scope of this project.

๐–๐ก๐š๐ญโ€™๐ฌ ๐๐ž๐ฑ๐ญ?

As we look to the future, one thing is clear: the work is far from over. This is just the beginning. Weโ€™ve seen firsthand the impact that this project has had, but there is still so much more to be done. We dream of reaching even more adolescent mothers and their children, ensuring that no one is left behind. With continued support, we can extend our reach, build more safe spaces, and offer more young mothers the chance to thrive.

At COWLHA, we remain committed to our mission: empowering women and girls, especially those living with HIV, to take control of their health, their futures, and their lives. Together, with your support and the strength of our communities, weโ€™ll keep pushing forward.

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