A Reach4Life club gathers under a mogothu tree at Tshwaragano Junior Secondary School in Maun
Substance abuse and pregnancy are on the rise among youth in northern Botswana, with Maun Senior Secondary School recording its highest number of pregnant students ever in 2023. HIV rates also are increasing, with an 85 percent surge in prevalence in Ngamiland West between 2013 and 2021.
In 2004, a group of youth in South Africa developed a curriculum called Reach4Life to deliver in secondary schools to counter the country’s HIV pandemic. Love Botswana was one of the first organizations to begin implementing the program, starting in 2005, and we have reached tens of thousands of youth with its powerful messages.
We organize Reach4Life clubs in secondary schools throughout northern Botswana. Our facilitators meet weekly with club members to deliver the curriculum’s 40 lessons, which are designed to help youth rethink their values around identity, sexuality and healthy relationships, substance use, and other issues facing today’s youth. The program has resulted in better grades, improved attitudes and decision-making, and higher school attendance.
The Reach4Life Bible is a cornerstone of the curriculum and is available for download at Google Play and the App Store
Students in Ghanzi display their new Bibles
In 2023, we sought to determine Reach4Life’s impact on substance use, so we surveyed current and former program participants. Responses demonstrated Reach4Life’s ability to prevent participants from getting into substance use.
