PVO / NGO initiatives, Africa. Women Fighting AIDS in Kenya (WOFAK)

Women Fighting AIDS in Kenya (WOFAK) was founded in order to improve the effectiveness of existing AIDS services delivered to women in Kenya. Founded by both seropositive and seronegative women, WOFAK is unique in that it is the only AIDS support organization (ASO) in Kenya run by and for women. WOFAK contributes to the empowerment of HIV positive women and girls by assisting them in gaining control over their own health and serostatus, to live positively with the infection, and to protect their families and communities from becoming infected. WOFAK founders feel that existing ASOs address women's issues as only a small part of their programs and that most existing programs aimed at women focus on commercial sex workers. Whenever possible, WOFAK provides psychological and material support for women affected by HIV/AIDS. They conduct training in home-based care techniques and visit hospitalized members to offer counseling and support. WOFAK conducts HIV/AIDS education and outreach in schools, churches, commercial centers, and rural areas. All activities center around a network of positive women from all parts of society responding to the community and advocating for stronger responses by the government and other agencies providing HIV/AIDS prevention and care services. They stress the basic human rights of HIV positive women such as their right to marriage and reproduction, proper medical care, housing, and jobs. For more information, please contact Dorothy Odhiambo, WOFAK, PO Box 58428, Nairobi, Kenya; tel: +1 254 2 217039; fax: +1 254 2 243164.