Programs: 1) Peer Educator Training – WOY trains local youth to be effective Peer Educators, going into local schools, communities, and youth hangouts to spread awareness and information to their peers and act as role models. Peer Educators are trained in a variety of teaching and facilitation techniques and are encouraged to be creative and versatile both in and out of the classroom. 2) In-School Youth Education – WOY’s Peer Educators deliver HIV/AIDS, sexual health, and life skills education to primary school youth, empowering them to make informed decisions about their sexual health and reduce their risk of infection. This is implemented using participation-based approaches, encouraging open discussion and questioning, and creating an environment where students are comfortable and having fun. 3) Out-of-School Youth Outreach – WOY Peer Educators take HIV/AIDS and sexual health education into the streets, conducting informal information sessions and condom promotion with out-of-school youth around Moshi and in high-risk youth hangouts (i.e. bars, nightclubs, and guest houses). This uses a more relaxed, conversational approach, avoiding a classroom-like setting and instead, meeting youth where they are and engaging them in conversation about sexual health. 4) Community Outreach – WOY works with other local NGOs, community members, and government leaders to spread awareness, advocate for youth empowerment, and reduce the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS by hosting community events, parent meetings, and teachers’ orientations. Through these, WOY strives to create an environment where people can be comfortable talking freely and openly about critical sexual issues, making it easier for our youth to ask their questions and get honest answers.

Successes: White Orange Youth has reached thousands of local youth, providing them with accurate information, life skills education, and access to proper prevention methods. Experience has shown that WOY’s program more than doubles youth’s knowledge of HIV/AIDS and increases open and honest communication between youth and adults regarding sexual health. WOY has facilitated training workshops for hundreds of out-of-school youth, providing them with important skills, opportunities to be good examples for their peers, and a full-time volunteer position at WOY. Gradually, more and more people are accepting condoms as a means of HIV and STI prevention, and WOY has helped increase the availability of condoms in some high-risk locations. WOY has a growing reputation within the local community and is receiving greater recognition as an active and effective youth organization, increasing demand for White Orange Youth’s services at various community levels. WOY has received recognition, as well, from the local government and is regularly incorporated in various community awareness activities, such as World AIDS Day, the Candlelight Memorial, and so on, playing an active role in generating greater general awareness about HIV/AIDS within the local community.

Who We Are: White Orange Youth is comprised of two full-time and four part-time staff and some twenty volunteers, both local and international. WOY is staffed by the very people it serves, those youth and young professionals who are at highest risk and recognize the need to take action against the rising crisis. WOY also has a Board of Directors, consisting of various community members and business leaders, which meets annually to review WOY’s work and assess its future direction. WOY is a membership organization, and has partners in various HIV/AIDS and youth-centered NGOs throughout the region. All of WOY’s programs are implemented through the hard work of devoted volunteers; WOY does not currently have the means to provide even full-time staff with a regular income.