Close to 1 million Malawians are infected by HIV. More than half are women, with young women three times more likely to be infected than their male peers. Funded by Comic Relief, Our Voices Our Lives programme was launched in July 2007. Over a period of four years, the programme will contribute to strengthen organisations of people living with HIV/AIDS, in particular women and girls in Malawi. This will help them to access services better, improve their livelihoods and influence decisions that directly affect their lives.
Through ‘Our Voices Our Lives’ programme, MANET+ is improving the quality of health, nutrition and livelihoods of marginalised PLWHIV in six districts in Malawi, as well as strengthening and broadening advocacy for their rights to equality and dignity and against stigma and discrimination.
In addition to extending practical support and developing a stronger gender approach to their work, One World Action is working with MANET+ to strengthen advocacy work to enable them to lobby health care providers, policy and lawmakers on issues of access to care and treatment and progressive legislation to protect the rights of PLHIV.
Among the initiatives there, for instance, are the training of community support groups in advocacy and lobbying, the creation of a Volunteers Charter for civil society organisations to apply as a tool to lobby government for greater support of carers, as well as the international networking and lobbying at forum like the Worlds AIDS Conference and through the EU/UK networks.
A unique collaboration will take place this year between MANET+ and the Southern African Legal Assistance Network (SALAN), who will conduct research on HIV/AIDS legislation in Malawi in relation to access to health (care and treatment) and justice issues. The findings will be published and disseminated at national, regional and international level with the aim of influencing decision-makers to better protect the rights of all PLHIV.
