Etafeni is a multi-purpose centre for children affected by AIDS and their caregivers in Nyanga, Cape Town, South Africa.

Even with anti-retroviral therapy, there are millions of children in South Africa who have lost their parents. They need to provide these children with care so that they have the chance to grow into responsible adults who are capable of feeling for others and contributing to society.

A model of how they can do this is being pioneered in Nyanga, a township outside Cape Town, by the Etafeni Trust. A small grassroots community-based organisation, the Etafeni Playgroup Project, formed a trust together with LifeLine/Childline Western Cape in 2001 when it became apparent that children in the Nyanga community were losing their parents to AIDS-related illnesses. Almost 30% of the local population in Nyanga is infected with the HI Virus.

The aim of the Trust is to build capacity in the local community in Nyanga – as well as operating a multi-purpose day care centre to sustain and support the community in their holistic care for children affected by AIDS.