WANASO was created in 1991 and comprises 16 countries in West Africa. The organization is an affiliate of the African Council of AIDS Service Organizations (AfriCASO), which itself is an affiliate of the International Council of AIDS Service Organizations (ICASO). WANASO is a combination of national community based networks (NGO, CBO, associations) fighting against HIV/AIDS in West Africa.

WANASO's expertise lies in networking and regrouping community based organizations for sharing experiences and coordinating activities at the regional and national levels. Speciifically, WANASO has collaborated with the international institutions such as WHO, ONUSIDA, UNDP and the World Bank.

Their focus for AWARE-HIV/AIDS includes the following:

• Strengthen the institutional capacity of the WANASO sub-regional secretariat in order to efficiently    play its role as regional network and build the capacity of its 16 national networks members

•  Promote sharing of experiences and disseminate/circulate information throughout the entire network

•  Support Policy and advocacy activities

•  Build the capacity of national networks