Southern African Network of People Who Use Drugs

What Southern African Network of People Who Use Drugs does

SANPUD is a registered South African non-profit organization (NPO 213-268) founded in 2014 and formally launched nationally in October 2020, operating as a peer-led network of member organizations representing people who use drugs (PWUD). Its core function is advocacy and coordination: it provides a collective representative voice for peer-led PWUD networks, facilitates establishment and capacitation of regional and provincial networks, conducts and publishes research on drug use and harm reduction (notably the 2023 Biobehavioural Survey on HIV/HCV/TB prevalence among people who inject drugs), and engages in national drug policy reform — including participation in South African National Drug Masterplan consultations and SANAC's PWUD Sub-Sector.

The organization's portfolio comprises programmatic initiatives rather than technology products: the HARMLess Inc. income generation project (including a 5-hectare farm in Schoemansdal, Mpumalanga), educational comics on ARV adherence and viral suppression, a Pregnancy and Substance Use Toolkit for healthcare workers, a Community-Led Monitoring program for healthcare service quality, the Make Art Not War arts initiative, and recent advocacy supporting Lenacapavir long-acting HIV prevention access. Operations span at least five South African provinces (KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Western Cape, Mpumalanga, Eastern Cape), with affiliate participation in continental and international networks including INPUD, AfricaNPUD, and the Love Alliance consortium covering 10 countries. The organization is staffed by approximately 13 named personnel including an Executive Director, Chairman, and province-based Community Linkage Officers.

SANPUD generates no commercial revenue; its funding model is exclusively grant-based, sourced from international donors including Open Society Foundations, PEPFAR/CDC, The Global Fund (via NACOSA), Robert Carr Fund, Elton John AIDS Foundation, and AIDSfonds. It does not charge beneficiaries for services and operates as a coordination, advocacy, and capacity-building body. Documented exposure to US funding cuts (per the Breaking Point report with Harm Reduction International) is a material operational risk. The organization has no proprietary technology platform; its distribution is peer-led through community networks, healthcare facility partnerships, and provincial chapters.

Name

Southern African Network of People Who Use Drugs

Legal name

Southern African Network of People Who Use Drugs

Website

https://sanpud.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SANPUD is a South African peer-led non-profit network coordinating advocacy, harm reduction, and policy reform for people who use drugs across five provinces, funded exclusively by international donors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Harm Reduction Advocacy and Services

NAICS

Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Substance Use Disorder Prevention & Recovery Services (BPAGACAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Substance Use Recovery & Harm Reduction Support Services (BPAGAEAO), Behavioral Health & Substance Use Public Health Programs (BPAIAJAK)

Keywords

• Harm reduction services
• Drug policy advocacy
• Peer-led support
• HIV prevention outreach
• Community-led monitoring

Headquarters

HQ city

Cape Town

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding: SANPUD operates as a registered non-profit organization (NPO 213-268) funded primarily through international donor funding including PEPFAR/CDC, Global Fund, Elton John AIDS Foundation, Robert Carr Fund, and Open Society Foundations. The organization coordinates funding for PWUD networks across South Africa.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

SANPUD is a registered non-profit organization made up of member peer-led organizations that defend the rights of people who use drugs in South Africa. It delivers harm reduction services, HIV prevention support, advocacy for decriminalization and rights-based drug policies, community-led monitoring of healthcare services, and capacity building for provincial PWUD networks. Core offerings include the HARMLess Farm income generation initiative, educational comics on HIV adherence, the Pregnancy and Substance Use Toolkit for healthcare workers, the Community-Led Monitoring program, and biobehavioural survey research.

Product overview

SANPUD operates as a peer-led network organization providing advocacy, harm reduction services, and community support for people who use drugs in South Africa. The portfolio includes the HARMLess Farm income generation project, educational comics for HIV adherence, the Pregnancy and Substance Use Toolkit for healthcare workers, community-led monitoring programs, art initiatives (Make Art Not War), and biobehavioural research surveys. The organization functions as a coordination and advocacy body rather than a technology product company.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HarmLess Inc. Income generation initiative for networks of people who use drugs, involving farming, agricultural skills training, and developing sustainable income streams for PWUD networks.

Products and services

• HARMLess Farm Income generation initiative for peer-led networks of people who use drugs, involving agricultural training and farming on a 5-hectare plot in Schoemansdal, Mpumalanga, combined with health education through comics and art production.
• Educational Comics Series Series of comics aimed at improving ARV adherence and achieving viral suppression among people who are HIV positive and use drugs, available in printed format for distribution to networks, service providers, and community organisations.
• Pregnancy and Substance Use Toolkit Toolkit for healthcare workers addressing maternal drug use in South Africa, providing compassionate approaches and guidance for serving pregnant people who use drugs.
• Community-Led Monitoring Community monitoring initiative enabling people who use drugs to track and report on healthcare service quality and access, supporting advocacy for improved services.
• Make Art Not War CDC-funded art workshops and community engagement initiative for people who use drugs, part of the TBHIV Care CDC-funded HarmLess Project.
• Biobehavioural Survey 2023 Population size estimation and biobehavioural survey among people who inject drugs conducted across four South African sites, measuring HIV, Hepatitis C, and TB prevalence.
• Lenacapavir HIV Prevention Long-acting HIV prevention option (injection providing 6 months of protection) now available at selected clinics, supported by SANPUD and UNDP advocacy efforts for people who use drugs.

Named customers2 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• TB HIV CarecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Implementing partner for HIV prevention services to people who inject drugs since 2014. Conducted biobehavioural survey in 2023. Hosted community advisory group meetings and national meetings of PWID that led to SANPUD establishment.
• Love AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSANPUD is a proud member of the Love Alliance, a five-year programme funded by AIDSfonds to achieve significant reduction in HIV incidence through policy influence, community organizing, and awareness raising across 10 countries including South Africa.
• Harm Reduction InternationalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for rapid country survey on US funding cuts impact on harm reduction. Collaborated on Breaking Point report documenting consequences of donor withdrawal on essential harm reduction services.
• SA National AIDS Council (SANAC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity Led Monitoring partner. SANPUD participates in PWUD Sub-Sector and national discussions through SANAC structures.
• NACOSAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrincipal Recipient for Global Fund community led monitoring, with SANPUD as implementing partner.
• INPUDcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational Network of People Who Use Drugs. SANPUD is affiliated and participates in global PWUD advocacy, INHSU conferences, and takes back what's ours documented history project.
• MainlineminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResource partner in Love Alliance developing database with relevant information about drug use, harm reduction and drug policy for priority countries.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Mainline: Dutch harm reduction organization focused on people who use drugs. Co-developed Love Alliance's drug-use and harm reduction database with SANPUD; comparable service delivery, peer engagement, and international advocacy approach.
• AfricaNPUD (African Network of People Who Use Drugs): Continental PWUD network coordinating national PWUD-led organizations across Africa. Operates parallel regional coordination, capacity building, and policy advocacy functions for SANPUD and counterpart networks in other African countries.
• Canadian Association of People Who Use Drugs (CAPUD): Canadian peer-led national organization representing people who use drugs. Functions as a national advocacy and peer-empowerment body with comparable mandate to SANPUD in the Canadian jurisdiction.
• International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC): Global network promoting drug policy reform grounded in human rights and public health. Comparable mission to SANPUD's drug-policy advocacy work, including participation in Africa Policy Week, Vusubuntu Coalition, and NDMP-related consultations.
• Eurasian Network of People Who Use Drugs (ENPUD): Peer-led regional network coordinating PWUD advocacy across Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Structural peer to SANPUD with the same member-driven PWUD national network model in a different geography.
• INPUD (International Network of People Who Use Drugs): Global peer-led network representing people who use drugs. SANPUD is an INPUD-affiliated national network, sharing the same peer-led advocacy model, governance principles, and focus on human rights and harm reduction at the international level.
• AIVL (Australian Injecting & Illicit Drug Users League): Australian peer-led national organization for people who use drugs. Operates as a national member-based peer network advocating for harm reduction and rights, structurally and functionally parallel to SANPUD but in the Australian context.
• NACOSA (Networking HIV/AIDS Community of Southern Africa): South African NGO operating as principal recipient for Global Fund community-led monitoring, with SANPUD as implementing partner. Comparable South Africa-based harm reduction and HIV community programming footprint.
• TB HIV Care: South African NGO delivering HIV and harm reduction services, including implementation partner for the 2023 biobehavioural survey. Operates overlapping service delivery and research functions in the South African PWUD/HIV space as SANPUD.
• Harm Reduction International: UK-based NGO advancing harm reduction policy and practice globally. Directly collaborated with SANPUD on the Breaking Point report documenting US funding-cut impacts on harm reduction services in South Africa, sharing advocacy and policy influence scope.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@sadrugpolicyweek7430
• Facebookfacebook.com/SANPUD1
• Xx.com/sanpud_npo
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sanpud

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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