A Roadmap for Change: SANPUD’s Strategic Plan 2026–2030

​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. 

Your browser does not support viewing this document. Click here to download the document.

​Rooted in the principle of “Nothing about us, without us,” the plan builds on SANPUD’s track record of securing harm reduction in national strategies, advocating for decriminalisation, and amplifying peer voices in both local and global forums. It reflects a participatory process led by people who use drugs themselves, ensuring that lived experience shapes every priority, from health access to legal reform.

​At its core, the plan confronts the crisis of criminalisation and stigma that fuels exclusion, poverty, and systemic injustice. It outlines how SANPUD will strengthen peer‑led networks, expand evidence‑based harm reduction services, and challenge discriminatory laws and practices. Short‑term objectives focus on shifting public attitudes and embedding harm reduction in services, while medium‑term goals target fairer policies, stronger community monitoring, and inclusion in decision‑making. The long‑term vision is systemic change: decriminalisation, rights‑based health services, and recognition of people who use drugs as legitimate actors in civil society.

​To achieve this transformation, SANPUD also commits to building its own organisational resilience. The plan identifies priorities such as financial sustainability, transparent governance, staff development, and knowledge generation. By investing in internal strength alongside external advocacy, SANPUD positions itself as both a movement and an institution capable of driving lasting change. Ultimately, the roadmap is a call to action: to create a South Africa where people who use drugs live with freedom, dignity, and voice, supported by evidence‑based services and respected as equal members of society.