Making the NSP 2007 – 2011 work for Children - Progress So Far? 26 July 2011 Yezingane Network Progress Report Oct 2009 to June 2011

Who is Yezingane Network ? Representing the Children’s Sector on SANAC Civil society network - representing thousands of children’s sector stakeholders across South Africa Currently 123 members (June 2011) Work to prevent and address the impact of HIV & AIDS on children, families and communities in South Africa Established in 2003 Yezingane means ‘for the children’ in isiZulu

Membership – Who are We ? Membership criteria of Yezingane Network - we would like to hear your views on these Membership to YN is open to any civil society organisation regardless of size and reach who meet the criteria Membership criteria - full membership (full voting rights) and information members (Government officials, donors and bilateral organisations, international agencies) Note Information members support the sector as development partners in ensuring active and vibrant civil society Individual membership allowed to people incl. health care practitioners and educators who have and continue to make a contribution to child rights & wellbeing through their work. Voting - current practice is all organisations and individual full members get an equal vote With few exceptions most of the work of Yezingane Network is through communication and consensus building and not through voting on issues with the exception of electoral processes.

How are We Structured ?

The Working Group

Who is SANAC? South African National AIDS Council (SANAC) was set up as an independent body in 2000 High-level multi-sectoral partnership body, comprised of government (RSA Deputy President chairs the Council alongside a Civil Society deputy-chair) & elected civil society reps from a range of sectors Leadership role:  building and maintaining consensus on policy and strategy,  overseeing overall implementation and review of the National Strategic Plan (NSP )

Who is SANAC? 19

Yezingane Network Contributions to SANAC What Yezingane Network aimed to achieve? Maintain active children’s sector representation on SANAC structures through input into the design & function of the structures Encourage more active engagement between various child related structures and processes. Did this through: 100% attendance at SANAC Plenary and PIC meetings during this period by Children’s Sector Reps 8 Technical Task Team (TTT) meetings (4 Treatment, Care and Support (TCS); 2 Research, Monitoring and Evaluation (RME); 1 Prevention, 1 Human Rights & Access to Justice) 3 SANAC strengthening & functioning related meetings Participation in 18 non-SANAC related meetings Engagement with other Sectors & important partners

Yezingane Contributions to NSP awareness work for and with children What Yezingane Network aimed to achieve? Promote NSP-literacy and action amongst Children’s Sector organisations Support monitoring and evaluation of child related outputs and outcomes of the NSP. Did this through: 3 workshops on the NSP with children from 7 organisations 1 Consultative meeting on with adults who support children’s groups Further distribution and translation (isiZulu, seSotho and Afrikaans) of existing NSP- literacy awareness raising materials and resources Continued to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the NSP for children in South Africa  2011 Scorecard – More than just a monitoring tool!

Maintaining an effective and mobilised Children’s Sector What Yezingane Network aimed to achieve? Ensure effective functioning of the Yezingane Network Identify & champion HIV and AIDS related issues needing urgent attention Did this through: Regular & well-organised meeting of YN structures Provincial mobilising events incl. Meeting of Children’s Sector across Provinces, provincial-level mobilisation workshops/meetings in Mpumalanga, W. Cape, Free State, E. Cape, N. Cape Improved communication & info. sharing Leadership changes in Secretariat – resignation of Rep Cati Vawda & election of new Sector Governance Audit by SANAC of Civil Society Sectors

Senzeni-Na ? (What Have We done ?) Made significant progress towards our goals Participated in SANAC Structures and improved coordination with other relevant bodies Support and monitor NSP implementation (NSP ) Improve effectiveness and cohesion of civil society around children especially around HIV and AIDS Helped SANAC and NSP to work for and with Children  Awareness and literacy about NSP and the programmes Raised the profile of Children in this epidemic  Invited by Govt to be part of the SA delegation to the High-level meeting at the UN in New York (June 2011)

What Have We Done ? Championed children’s HIV and AIDS issues The Government’s HCT campaign, specifically mass testing of children in schools Consensus building on Infant feeding in the context of HIV and AIDS & publication ‘Questions and Answers: Infant feeding in the context of HIV in South Africa (1 st ed. Dec. 2010; 2 nd ed. June 2011) Considerable inputs to the Mid Term Review (MTR) of the current NSP – basis for advocacy strategy for NSP Community Care Worker policy Continued PMTCT social mobilisation campaign in support of the National treatment programme

Key Achievements since Oct Actively represented the Sector in SANAC structures & processes incl. in leadership roles within SANAC (TCS TTT Co-chaired by YN rep for 2 yrs) With other key stakeholders influenced Government to re-think the mass testing in schools as part of the HCT Campaign Influenced a number of policies affecting children (from Social to Health and Education) Raised awareness and mobilised membership around the NSP, specifically through a child-focused lens Strong mobilisation of the Sector across S.A. to support the PMTCT National Campaign as a gateway to improved maternal, newborn & child health & wellness

Key Achievements since Oct Telling the Yezingane Network Story – a publication reflecting the growth & development of the Children’s Sector Network since its inception. Monitoring of S.A’s progress in implementing the NSP for children. The Children’s HIV and AIDS Scorecard 2011: Monitoring South Africa’s response to children and HIV and AIDS - evidence-based snapshot of progress or lack thereof in achieving the NSP goals and targets.

Opportunities and key focus areas Provide strategic input to the drafting of the NSP and the accompanying monitoring and evaluation framework Create a platform for active child participation in the development of the NSP Support and enable SANAC to put in place effective monitoring and evaluation systems Develop a new Children’s SIP to provide ongoing support for implementation of the new NSP over the next 5 years Champion key children’s sector issues Strengthen the ‘Children’s Sector Voice’ through Provincial Mobilising project Strengthen the financial sustainability of the Networks such as Yezingane Network in the increasingly unyielding fiscal environment

Thank You