Kenya’s first Harm Reduction Bill did not emerge in isolation—it grew from years of deliberate, feminist, community‑led organising supported by the Love Alliance, SANPUD, INPUD, and regional peer networks. 

​SANPUD played a central and highly visible role throughout the INHSU 2025 Conference, held from 14–17 October 2025 at the Century City Conference Centre in Cape Town, South Africa.

The 7th Pan Africa ILGA Regional Conference took place in Muldersdrift, Johannesburg, from 24–28 November 2025, and marked SANPUD’s first-ever participation in this regional gathering. Representing SANPUD were Charne Roberts and Ruan Carsten, who used the space to strengthen alliances with LGBTQI‑led movements and position harm reduction within broader queer rights and health agendas.

Charne Roberts’ journey from survival to national advocacy is a powerful reminder that lived experience can drive real change—read how Love Alliance support helped her build FEMALIVE, document abuse, and shift services toward dignity and rights; 

Sudden withdrawals of US funding and a reduction in Global Fund allocations have sharply disrupted harm‑reduction and key‑population HIV prevention services across South Africa. The rapid assessment found dozens of USAID‑funded projects terminated, thousands of frontline posts affected, and interruptions to opioid substitution therapy (OST), needle‑and‑syringe programmes (NSP), HIV testing, ART and PrEP in several high‑burden districts. These service losses, documented in the report, coincide with increased overdose risk and greater barriers to care for people who inject drugs, sex workers and men who have sex with men.  

​The SANPUD Annual Report 2024 is more than a snapshot of one year — it is a testament to the long road travelled by the South African Network of People Who Use Drugs and its partners.

​The SANPUD Strategic Plan 2026–2030: Freedom, Dignity & Voice sets out a bold roadmap for advancing the rights of people who use drugs in South Africa. 

Join the South African Network of People Who Use Drugs (SANPUD) and our community for the Annual General Meeting on 16 October 2025 at 4 pm at Crystal Towers, Century City, with a Zoom option for remote attendees.