Since 2013, The Ivory Foundation has supported the initiatives led by Designing Hope in Southern Africa for people living with HIV/AIDS, with the aim of providing nutritional support and ensuring access to healthy, balanced diets.
Eswatini is the country most affected by HIV/AIDS in the world. Nearly 40% of the population was HIV-positive in 2003. Thanks to treatment, this rate has significantly declined and now stands at around 27% of the adult population.
Since 2004, Designing Hope has been supporting HIV-positive patients receiving care at Piggs Peak Hospital. The hospital hosts a Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) centre, which is the only facility in the region providing treatment for a population of approximately 50,000 people.
Designing Hope initially supported patients by opening a canteen in 2004, providing hot meals to the 240 patients followed at the VCT. These meals were a real incentive for individuals who sometimes travelled up to two hours and had to wait an entire day to see a doctor and receive their monthly treatment.
As the number of beneficiaries grew rapidly, thanks to increased testing and improved treatment coverage, the programme evolved from hot meals to cold snacks, prepared locally with the support group Fundzisa Live. Since 2013, this programme has been fully funded by The Ivory Foundation.
Following consultations with the hospital’s medical team, Designing Hope and The Ivory Foundation further adapted the programme in 2018 to provide more targeted support to the most vulnerable patients. Sixty priority beneficiaries were identified based on physical criteria (height-to-weight ratio), CD4 count, and social conditions.
With the support of The Ivory Foundation, Designing Hope now funds the monthly distribution of 60 food parcels containing oil, dried beans and vegetables, partly produced by the Garden of Skills.
In addition, The Ivory Foundation supports a programme for HIV-positive children, organised through a “Teen Club”. Since 2020, the Foundation has funded the distribution of nutritional supplements to children undergoing antiretroviral treatment, ensuring they do not take their daily medication on an empty stomach.
In order to improve access to balanced diets for vulnerable people living with HIV/AIDS, Designing Hope, with the support of The Ivory Foundation, has developed several initiatives encouraging patients to grow their own food.
At Piggs Peak, a demonstration garden has been established within the hospital’s testing centre. Its aim is to raise awareness among patients about the benefits of growing vegetables using productive, water-efficient and environmentally friendly practices. In 2018, the hospital garden was expanded and a greenhouse was built to produce seedlings on multi-level shelving, supplying various educational and community gardens.
Between 2017 and 2019, the “One House One Garden” programme was implemented with the support of The Ivory Foundation. It aimed to help vulnerable patients and their families develop home gardens.
The project provided logistical and financial support for fenced plots, installed by a team of five women from Fundzisa Live. In some cases, water storage systems were also installed, using rainwater or nearby water sources. Families also received basic toolkits and seeds.
The team also created demonstration beds that families could replicate. Around twenty families benefited from this programme, along with ongoing support.
However, logistical challenges arose, particularly in reaching the most remote households, which were often inaccessible to delivery vehicles.
As a result, training sessions were organised at the Garden of Skills, where patients receive tailored support, along with seeds and seedlings to start their own gardens.