People infected and affected by HIV/AIDS are at the heart of the fight against the pandemic. To have an effective response, Persons Living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA), their families and communities need to be involved in the programming and implementation of interventions.

Efforts have been undertaken to form and organize PLHA support groups and associations in all countries in Africa . Experience has shown that whereas the individual organizations are very weak in influencing policies and in making great contribution into local, national or regional responses, combining their strengths can have a great synergetic effect. However, bringing them together at both the national and regional levels has been very challenging. To this end the Network of African People Living With HIV/AIDS in West Africa (NAP+/WA) in collaboration with AWARE-HIV/AIDS has been playing a leading role in facilitating efforts of various PLHA associations in some West Africa such as Ghana, Niger, Mali, Guinea, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Guinea Bissau and Mauritania, to form a network.

NAP+/WA in collaboration with AWARE-HIV/AIDS convened a meeting in Accra to share a situational analysis of the network with the aim of identifying challenges and developing an action plan to address them. An Executive Committee was nominated and tasked to lead the processes of the creation of a national network of PLHAs in Ghana with support from NAP+/WA and AWARE-HIV/AIDS. Since its nomination, the Executive Committee has achieved the following results:

•  Support from the Ghana AIDS Commission and the HIV/AIDS Project (SHARP) funded by the USAID bilateral mission;

•  Support from the SHARP Project for the organization of a Delegates' Conference that established the national network.

•  The delegates' conference adopted the constitution of the network and also elected the board and the executive committee;

•  A secretariat was set up and funding assistance secured for the next 5 years.

Following the success of the Ghanaian experience, NAP+ supported Niger and Mali in the establishment of their national networks, with assistance from members of the national networks of Burkina Faso and Côte d'Ivoire . Guinea is also following suite, and is expected to have its own network by the end of this year.

The above could be summarized in three (3) success points which are:

•  The ability of AWARE-HIV/AIDS to support as many as three (3) countries in the region to establish their own networks within a short time,

•  The ability of AWARE-HIV/AIDS to promote collaboration among countries, a situation which made it possible for Niger and Mali to receive assistance from Burkina Faso and Côte d'Ivoire , and finally

•  The ability of AWARE-HIV/AIDS to facilitate the involvement of other partners to play facilitating role.