Leading NGO implementing integrated care draws closer to community
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA: 5 MAY 2026: TB HIV Care (THC) has introduced a range of integrated HIV prevention, treatment and human rights services for men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender people in George, Western Cape. THC is one of several implementing partners delivering the Global Fund-supported programme, with The Aurum Institute serving as the primary recipient. The Programme is implemented at scale across selected districts in the Eastern Cape, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Gauteng, North-West, and the Western Cape. These services will be accessible at local Drop-In Centres (DICs), where trained staff will welcome clients from marginalised populations. Integrated services will be anchored in a hybrid delivery model that combines fixed-site drop-in centres with mobile clinics and community-based outreach at hotspots.
“For too long, men who have sex with men and transgender people in South Africa have been asked to choose between their health and their dignity. This programme refuses that false choice. Through drop-in centres, mobile services and peer-led outreach, we will offer same-day HIV testing, same-day PrEP and ART initiation, STI and TB screening, mental health support and legal referral pathways, all delivered in safe, stigma-free spaces designed with and for these communities”, said Prof. Harry Hausler, Chief Executive Officer of TB HIV Care.
The programme comes at a critical moment for South Africa’s HIV response. Current modelling indicates that HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men (MSM) is 28.6%(1), while this population represents approximately 0.9% of all men in the country(2). Despite the high burden, awareness of HIV status among MSM living with HIV remains sub-optimal. An estimated 67% in Cape Town, 68% in Johannesburg and 60% in Mahikeng, roughly two in every three MSM living with HIV(3). While new HIV infections among MSM have nearly halved over the past decade, from an estimated 10,658 new infections in 2010 to 5,830 in 20241, tens of thousands of men continue to face high vulnerability, compounded by homophobia, discrimination, sexual and gender-based violence, hate crimes, economic exclusion, and the hidden nature of non-gay-identifying sexual networks.
The picture is even starker for transgender people. An estimated 180,000 transgender people live in South Africa,(4) and HIV prevalence among transgender women is far higher than in the general population, from a pooled national estimate of around 58% to as high as 63% in Johannesburg,(5),(6) roughly three times the prevalence among reproductive-age adults nationally.(6) This burden is compounded by transphobia and stigma at health facilities, gender-based violence, mental health challenges, substance use, homelessness, and limited access to gender-affirming care. Many transgender women engage in sex work to survive, further deepening their vulnerability to HIV, STIs and violence. These inequities are not driven by biology. They are driven by structural barriers, criminalisation, stigma, and exclusion from services designed without key populations in mind, which push people away from testing, prevention and treatment at precisely the moments they most need them.
“You cannot end HIV in South Africa while leaving MSM and transgender communities behind. Our response must meet people where they are, on their terms, with the services they actually need, from PrEP and ART to protection from violence. The evidence is clear: when peers lead, when services are truly integrated, and when human rights sit at the centre of care, people engage, and they stay engaged”, said Mfezi Mcingana, Director: Key Populations at TB HIV Care.
Trained peer educators from MSM and transgender communities will lead demand generation and case-finding using a Social Network Strategy, extending services to those who are hidden, underserved or disconnected from mainstream care, including non-gay-identifying MSM, young transgender people, and those engaged in chemsex. For transgender clients, the package includes behavioural and social components of gender-affirming health care, transition journey planning, and referral pathways for hormonal therapy, alongside support for gender-marker documentation changes. The programme also invests in rights literacy, community-led documentation of human rights violations, and sensitisation training for healthcare workers and law enforcement, to dismantle the stigma that continues to drive people away from life-saving services.
For funders and government partners, the initiative is underwritten by nearly a century of frontline public health delivery. In its 2024/2025 financial year, TB HIV Care reached over 1.1 million people with HIV testing services, supported 321,492 people on antiretroviral therapy, initiated 47,286 clients on pre-exposure prophylaxis, and started 16,207 people on TB preventive treatment. Among monitored clients, the organisation achieved a 95% viral load suppression rate, one of the strongest indicators of treatment success and reduced onward transmission(7). Working with populations often excluded from public health systems, the organisation reached 19,623 sex workers, provided essential health services to 23,826 inmates in correctional centres, and initiated opiate agonist therapy for more than 1,200 people who inject drugs.
“TB HIV Care offers more than implementation capacity. As we approach our centenary in 2029, we bring 97 years of institutional knowledge, a workforce embedded in communities, systems that deliver measurable impact, and a track record of turning resources into results. Whether you are a funder seeking proven impact, a government department seeking a reliable partner, or a private-sector entity committed to health equity, this programme is an invitation to co-invest in a healthier, more inclusive South Africa”, said Prof. Hausler.
Communities are welcome to visit the TB HIV Care Drop-In Centre in George:
- Contact : Prince Mathe, Project Coordinator
- Email : Prince.Mathe@tbhivcare.org
- Address : Cnr. Binne Street & PW Botha Boulevard, George Industrial
References:
- Johnson, L.F. (2025) Thembisa model version 4.7: estimates of HIV prevalence and incidence in South Africa. Available at: https://www.thembisa.org (Accessed: 22 April 2026).
- Stevens, O. et al. (2024) ‘Population size, HIV prevalence, and antiretroviral therapy coverage among key populations in sub-Saharan Africa: collation and synthesis of survey data, 2010–23’, The Lancet Global Health, 12(9), e1400–e1412. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2214-109X(24)00236-5
- Giovenco, D. et al. (2025) ‘The treatment gap and the HIV care continuum for cisgender men who have sex with men in three South African cities: findings from a biobehavioural survey, 2019’, PLOS Global Public Health, 5(9), e0004874. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0004874
- UNAIDS (2022) Key Populations Atlas. Geneva: Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS. Available at: https://kpatlas.unaids.org (Accessed: 22 April 2026).
- Cloete, A. et al. (2023) ‘The HIV care continuum for sexually active transgender women in three metropolitan municipalities in South Africa: findings from a biobehavioural survey 2018–19’, The Lancet HIV, 10(6), e375–e384. Available at: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanhiv/article/PIIS2352-3018(23)00059-0/abstract (Accessed: 22 April 2026).
- Poteat, T. et al. (2024) ‘Transgender-Specific Differentiated HIV Service Delivery Models in the South African Public Primary Health Care System (Jabula Uzibone): Protocol for an Implementation Study’, JMIR Research Protocols, 13, e64373. https://doi.org/10.2196/64373
- TB HIV Care (2025) Annual Report 2024–2025. Cape Town: TB HIV Care. Available at: https://tbhivcare.org/annual-reports/ (Accessed: 22 April 2026).
Issued by:
- Aziel Gangerdine
- TB HIV Care, Spokesperson
- E-mail: aziel@tbhivcare.org
- Cell: +27 (0) 66 545 6053
ENDS.
TB HIV Care
TB HIV Care is a registered non-profit company (NPC) that puts integrated care at the heart of responding to TB, HIV, and other major diseases. We work to prevent, find and treat TB and HIV in South Africa as well as targeting our interventions to address the needs of populations most at risk, including underserved communities, adolescent girls and young women, inmates in correctional centres, sex workers and people who inject drugs.
