Food & Friends, through our national association, ANSA, and in concert with sister agencies across the United States, has embarked on an exciting new initiative in Africa, working with community-based partners in South Africa and Namibia to help improve nutrition services. Food & Friends will share the lessons learned in providing clinically appropriate nutrition to people with HIV/AIDS in the U.S. to replicate our life-sustaining programs where they are needed the most.

This summer, Food & Friends' Foundation and Corporate Grants Manager, Emily Piccirillo, traveled to Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, as part of this program. Emily was joined by representatives from Food & Friends’ sister agencies: Susan Daugherty-Rodriguez, RD, LDN, Chief Operating Officer of MANNA in Philadelphia, Client Services Manager Rachel Gardner of Food For Thought in Sonoma County, California, and Margie Erwin, RD, of Sacramento, California. This team was led by Mary Reed, Deputy Executive Director of ANSA's Global Program. While there, Emily shared her knowledge of fundraising with Hope Initiatives, an HIV/AIDS service organization in the informal settlements of Okahandje Park and Kilimandjaro Park just outside of Windhoek. This visit laid the groundwork for extending a range of technical expertise for the improvement of nutrition in these communities that are hard hit by HIV/AIDS, with a special focus on helping orphans and vulnerable children.

In February 2008, Community Dietitian Sapna Batheja visited Namibia as part of the program.  For 10 days, she worked with Hope Initiatives in Namibia to help them assess current programming and plan for expanded programming to provide breakfast and nutrition counseling to HIV-infected, and affected, children through their community based feeding programs.