This report encompasses a situational analysis which was carried out in seven research sites in Botswana: Palapye, Letlhakeng, Kanye, Mahalapye, Molepolole, Serowe and Maun. Information was collected from orphans and vulnerable children (OVC), their caregivers, community members, community-based organisations (CBOs), government officials and community leaders; as well as members of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and faith-based organisations (FBOs). The objectives of the study as outlined in this report, are to improve the living conditions of orphans and vulnerable children; to support households and families to cope with the increasing burden of care for affected and vulnerable children; to strengthen community-based support systems under which vulnerable children exist; and to build community-based systems for sustaining care and support to vulnerable children and their families. In 2002, the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) was commissioned by the WK Kellogg Foundation to develop and implement a five-year intervention project focusing on orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in southern Africa. In collaboration with several partner organisations, the project currently focuses on how children, families and communities in Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe are coping with the impact of HIV/AIDS. The aim of the project is to develop models of best practice so as to enhance and improve support structures for OVC in the southern African region as a whole.

The disproportional loss of individuals to HIV/AIDS in their most productive years raises concerns over the welfare of surviving members of affected families and communities. One consequence of the rapid increase in adult mortality is the rise in the proportion of children who are orphaned. Sub-Saharan Africa, accounts for about 90 percent of these. Mainly due to the staggering toll of HIV/AIDS, research effort has focused on treatment and prevention. Children have received attention primarily in relation to 'mother to child transmission' and paediatric AIDS. These issues are important and compelling but fail to capture the whole story - the unprecedented surge in the number of children made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS. In this book we reflect on the plight of children classified as vulnerable, review interventions implemented to improve their welfare and grapple with the concept of vulnerability as it relates to human rights and the African child.

In 2002, the Human Sciences Research Council was commissioned by the WK Kellogg Foundation to develop and implement a five-year intervention project focusing on orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in southern Africa. In collaboration with several partner organizations, the project currently focuses on how children, families and communities in Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe are coping with the impact of HIV/AIDS. The aim of the project is to develop models of best practise so as to enhance and improve support structures for OVC in the southern African region as a whole. This report forms part of a series that examines the work undertaken as part of the Kellogg OVC Intervention Project from 2002 to 2005.

In response to the AIDS epidemic and poverty, the Zimbabwean government and other organisations are implementing various programmes aimed at assisting orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in the eight districts surveyed. It is important to have an audit of the social services and support structures available for OVC in the eight districts and to have a clear understanding of the situation of OVC, including their needs and concerns, in order to have proper prioritisation, design and evaluation of programmes that are aimed at supporting the affected children.

In 2002, the Human Sciences Research Council was commissioned by the WK Kellogg Foundation to develop and implement a five-year intervention project focusing on orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in southern Africa. In collaboration with several partner organizations, the project currently focuses on how children, families and communities in Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe are coping with the impact of HIV/AIDS. The aim of the project is to develop models of best practise so as to enhance and improve support structures for OVC in the southern African region as a whole. This report forms part of a series that examines the work undertaken as part of the Kellogg OVC Intervention Project from 2002 to 2005.