M2m
NGO in Cape Town

mothers2mothers is an NGO that helps to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

We have a variety of projects and initiatives in each of the countries we work. We believe mothers and children have a right to a healthy future. While tremendous progress has been made over the last decade to eliminate paediatric AIDS, more than 200 babies are still infected with HIV each day in sub-Saharan Africa. Most of them acquire HIV from their mothers during pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding. Effective and inexpensive medical interventions are available that can keep mothers and babies healthy. However, most health centres in sub-Saharan Africa are severely understaffed which leaves doctors and nurses with only minutes to give a pregnant woman her HIV diagnosis and explain all of the drugs and tests she must adhere to in order to keep herself healthy and protect her baby from HIV. The stigma of HIV that is prevalent in many African communities causes women to live in fear, making it difficult for them to get the care they need. We train, employ, and empower local mothers living with HIV, called Mentor Mothers, as frontline healthcare workers in understaffed health centres and within communities. In one-on-one and group sessions, Mentor Mothers provide essential health education and support to women on how they can protect their babies from HIV infection, and keep themselves and their families healthy. Mentor Mothers’ intimate understanding of the social and cultural challenges of living with HIV gives them a unique ability to form trusted relationships with other women, vital to helping them overcome their fears and make lifesaving decisions. In fact, m2m’s 2015 Annual Evaluation shows that our programme has virtually eliminated mother-to-child transmission of HIV for two years in a row, with an average transmission rate of 2.1%. The employment enables Mentor Mothers to gain financial security for themselves and their families. By virtue of being professionalised, Mentor Mothers become role models in health centres and their communities, putting a face to empowered, strong, and healthy HIV-positive women, and thereby reducing HIV-related stigma and discrimination. m2m also contributes to UNAIDS 90-90-90 targets to ensure people are tested, people testing positive for HIV receive treatment, and people placed on treatment get the best outcomes. Vision and Mission Discover what guides all of the work we do. Read about our amazing work from the women that make it happen. We believe in the power of women to eliminate paediatric AIDS and create health and hope for themselves and their babies, families, and communities. Our mission is to impact the health of mothers by putting them at the heart of improving reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health. Our Mentor Mother Model empowers mothers living with HIV, through education and employment, as role models to help other women access essential services and medical care. Eliminate HIV infections in children Reduce maternal and child mortality Advance healthy development of newborns and children Improve the health of women, their partners, and families Promote universal access to reproductive health and family planning Reduce stigma and discrimination Promote gender equality Support livelihood development for families and communities.