YOLO stands for ‘you only live once’. This acronym is very popular on social media and young people themselves chose it because it resonates strongly with them. YOLO is aimed at building resilience among youth to enable them to withstand the pressures that lead to risk-taking. The modules are tailored to address behavioral traits that instill positive values among the youth.

Young persons undergo twelve sessions that are aimed at building them up to become accountable and responsible citizens. The emphasis is on the developmental needs of young people, which include achieving a sense of identity, a need for positive social interaction and developing skills and attributes, including self-confidence, a positive self-image, assertiveness and decision-making skills. Evidence shows that young people with high levels of self-esteem and self-efficacy are less likely to become infected with HIV.

YOLO Program Objectives Are:

• Build young people’s resilience, self-confidence, self-esteem (Building Block One);
• reaffirm young people’s human rights in terms of sexual and reproductive health (Building Block Two);
• minimize HIV transmission among the youth through skills development around risky sexual behavior (Building Block Three);
• build young people’s knowledge, attitude and skills to voluntarily assume positive practices and sustain positive behavior outcomes (Building Block Four); and develop and invest in social skills in young people to build healthy relationships and communicate effectively about their healthy sexual choices (Building Block Five).

The program follows a “theory of change,” a model for how program sessions are designed to contribute to specific changes in participants’ lives over time, and the theory of change is based on the Socio-Ecological. This in the program is reinforced using imagery, Bokamoso and Friends, and through sessions that help young people understand how to build and strengthen their relations with other people. The ten sessions are based on themes that help participants understand who they are and how their environment influence their behavior either in a positive way or negative way. The themes also help participants understand how they can interface with their environment to help them in decision making, and the most important aspect of the program is that participant end the program with a personal plan for their lives, tools and skills to navigate through challenges, and an understanding of how they can realize their plan. the socio-ecological model is applied with specific focus on youth (ages 10–14) with issues of HIV and teenage and unplanned pregnancy prevention as key focus areas.

CHOMMY Program Objectives Are:

• To build and strengthen the pre-teens sense of self
• To equip pre-teens, adolescents and young people with knowledge, skills and values to make responsible choices about their sexual and social relationships,
• To scale up HIV prevention interventions targeted at early teens to impact positively on social norms, gender equality, and as well as sexual decision making.
• To impact positively on social norms, gender equality, and as well as sexual decision making.

A young person who takes part in the program is expected to achieve benefits such as personal, social and health wellness; change their attitudes and awareness of pro –life social influences.

This program acknowledges that boys are equal members of society; they should not be left out in all social activities. The ultimate goal of the program is to develop a strong front of boys who educate other boys and inspire positive change that subsequently result in prevention of new HIV infections and gender based violence early on. The twenty-two sessions of the program are premised on the Social Ecology Model which takes into consideration various level intervention from the individual, family, community and society.

Boys Championing Change Program Objectives Are:

• To build knowledge, attitude and skills to voluntarily assume positive practices and sustain positive behavior outcomes with regards to HIV and Gender Based Violence prevention.
• To invest positive values in boys to become change agents within their schools and communities.
• Instill active citizenry amongst the boys.
• Enhance communication between men and boys, parents and their children on sexual reproductive health rights.
• Increase the involvement of boys in the protection of women and girls from gender- based violence and HIV acquisition.

Despite significant advances by the global community towards meeting the targets within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), gender inequality continues to undermine the rights of women, men, girls and boys, as well as impede development and democracy building, and compromise the livelihoods and freedom of millions. Indeed, slowest progress has been made in meeting the SDG targets around the issue of gender equality; and Sub-Saharan Africa – as throughout the rest of Africa – has lagged behind other regions. 

Despite the growing understanding that gender norms transformation, including shifting gender power dynamics and norms, is critical to achieving gender equality, very few interventions have attempted to effectively address these norms in a sustainable and large scale fashion. Numerous interventions have focused mainly on adult women, with little attention paid to men – let alone men and women, adolescent girls and boys. Leaving men and boys at the periphery of interventions promoting gender equitable attitudes and behaviors has slowed down progress in achieving gender equality, which is important in addressing GBV in a sustained manner.

Effective programs therefore, must target men to undo the long ingrained beliefs and experiences about masculinity, gender and sexuality to identify equitable norms that promote women’s self-efficacy and self-esteem and the respect of their human rights. The Men Championing Change program therefore envisages a cohort of men that will bring about cohesion and positive relations between men, women, children and other key populations. The program aims to harness the power of men so that they can be agents of social change. The MCC program envisages a man of stature who is of positive influence in the community, understands and is not intimidated by gender equality. It is when men are meaningfully engaged that reduction in gender based violence and new HIV infections can be realized. The program is based on the belief that men can be positive role models to boys, to respect women, LGBTQI+ and people with disabilities.

Through the Men Championing Change Program, the Department of Social Development (DSD) plans to mobilize men to become catalysts of social and behavior change to attain reduction in new HIV, TB and Sexually transmitted infections. The program seeks to address risky sexual behaviors that place men at risk of acquiring HIV, for reduction of new HIV infections, and to address structural drivers of both HIV and Gender based violence.

 The overarching goal of the project is to create an enabling environment in which men can dialogue HIV and GBV prevention, and to inspire positive values related to sex and sexuality. Furthermore, the program hopes to instill active citizenry amongst men, and break communication barriers between men and women. This program acknowledges that men are equal members of society; they live within families and communities. The ultimate goal of the program is to develop a strong front of men who educate other men and inspire positive change that subsequently result in prevention of new HIV infections and gender based violence. The program is premised on the Social Ecology Model which takes into consideration various level of intervention from the individual, family, community and society.

The Program’s Objectives Are As Follows:

• Build knowledge, attitude and skills to voluntarily assume positive practices and sustain positive behavior outcomes.
• Invest positive values in men to become change agents within their communities. Instill active citizenry amongst men and boys.
• Enhance communication between men and boys, parents and their children on sexual reproductive health and rights.
• Increase the involvement of men in the protection of women and girls from gender-based violence and HIV acquisition.

The Families Matter! Program (FMP) is an evidence-based HIV prevention intervention for parents, guardians, and other primary caregivers (hereafter referred to as “parents/caregivers”) of preadolescents ages 9–14 years and adolescents 15-19 years. FMP targets parents/caregivers of the younger age band (9-14 year olds/preadolescents) and FMP2 targets parents/caregivers of the adolescents in the older age band (15-19 year olds). However, the overall program goals of FMP and FMP2 are the same. Each version of the program aims to enhance protective parenting practices that are associated with risk avoidance and risk reduction among youth and promote parent-child communication about sex and sexual risk reduction. Henceforth, “FMP” will be used, unless programmatic distinctions need to be made.

FMP consists of 7 sessions (about 3 hours each) delivered by two, trained and certified facilitators (one male, one female) over the course of 7 weeks. Groups are composed of 18- 30 parents/caregivers. Adult learning principles and participatory methods are used to engage parents/caregivers.

Families Matter Program Objectives:

• Encouraging general parenting practices (relationship-building, monitoring, positive reinforcement, and general communication) that increase the likelihood that children will not engage in risky sexual behaviours.
• Improving parents/caregivers’ ability to communicate effectively with their children about sex-related topics and sexual risk reduction.
• Raising awareness about the sexual risks faced by many adolescents, including risks of child sexual abuse (CSA) and gender-based violence (GBV).
• Increasing awareness and understanding of the specific challenges faced by adolescents living with HIV (ALHIV) – including stigma, disclosure, ART adherence and engaging in healthy relationships – and to help family and community members strengthen their skills to provide ALHIV with effective guidance and support related to these issues.

The Community Capacity Enhancement program, or CCE, is an integral part of UNDP’s Leadership for Results program and is based on a methodology known as Community Conversations. The CCE program is aimed at dealing with the underlying causes of HIV/AIDS, be they power relations, gender issues, stigma or discrimination. Most community methodologies rightly focus on awareness-raising and discussion; CCE focuses heavily on interactive dialogue on the epidemic’s deeper causes and, through a facilitated process, community decision-making and action. The CCE program is based on a three-year strategy developed by the UNDP for the implementation of the Leadership for Results Program.

The CCE program explicitly focuses on strengthening the capacity of civil society and community-based organisations – the groups that will be implementing the program. There are guidelines for choosing organizations with whom UNDP will work – guidelines that are based on core human rights principles. These principles include, but are not limited to, the demonstrated capacity to work sensitively with communities, taking into account gender-related issues.

CCE Program Objectives Are:

The main objective of Community Conversations is to generate a response to HIV/AIDS that integrates individual and collective concerns, values and beliefs and addresses individual and collective attitudes and behaviours embedded in social systems and structures. Specifically, this approach aims to:

• Generate a deep understanding of the complex nature of the epidemic within individuals and communities, and to create the social cohesion that is necessary to create an environment for political, legal and ethical change.
• Support the development of self-esteem, self-confidence, tolerance, trust, accountability, introspection and self-management.
• Examine social contracts among various groups in the community – for example, between women and men, people living with HIV and those who have not been tested, the young and the old, the rich and poor – and to address girls’ vulnerability.
• Build a pool of resource persons with transformative leadership abilities and facilitation skills in Community Conversations to scale up the community response to HIV and related development issues.
• Bring the voices of people into the national response, and integrate community concerns and decisions into national and decentralized plans with the aim of linking resources to individual and collective needs.
• Strengthen the capacity of non-governmental and community-based organisations to develop appropriate strategies for a response that places communities and individuals at the centre.

• Traditional leaders wield influence and command much respect within their communities.
• As custodians of culture, traditional leaders have the required influence to alter underlying values and beliefs that are detrimental to community members.
• This programme encourages open discussion of cultural beliefs and practices in the community as a way of identifying those that contribute towards curbing social ills and those that fuel unacceptable behaviour.

• Preventing drug dependency, providing information to the community on drug abuse, educating youth regarding drug abuse and establishing registered treatment centres.
• The campaign aims at creating awareness of and discourages substance abuse amongst communities.
• The purpose of the Ke Moja programme is to provide young people with information regarding healthy lifestyles and caring for their bodies.

• OVC and vulnerable support programs, e.g. forming supporting groups and assisting in child headed households.
• Awareness campaigns and health care education programs.
• Training Community Health Care workers on home based nursing care and relevant capacity building programs. Eg lay counseling skills
• Provision of information dissemination programs, handing out pamphlets
• Home Based Nursing Care eg visiting households and assisting those who are bedridden.
• Establishing various support groups including those that are HIV/AIDS volunteers, youth, parents and victims of violence.
• Self-help and job opportunities, if funding allows it, e.g. recruitment of unemployed people, and voluntary services.
• Data base compilation on IKS (Indigenous Knowledge systems). Identification of traditional medicines and their use from various communities.
• Cultural heritage programs.
• Food security (gardening).
• Skills development (sewing).