The REACH program is being implemented in 9 states, Bayelsa, Ekiti, Enugu, Ebonyi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Ondo, and Rivers. The two thematic areas are HIV Prevention which targets the general population, in and out of school youths and small groups of special populations, the visually and hearing impaired; and the OVC program area targeting orphans and vulnerable children under age 18, their caregivers and care providers.

For COP12, REACH will focus on consolidation of achievements of the last two years. The REACH sub partners have been assessed and institutional strengthening plans are currently being implemented. The focus will be on leadership, governance, resource mobilization and community participation to ensure continuity at all levels. In order to develop a sustainable and cost effective model, REACH will continue to provide support to the relevant government agencies to ensure enhanced coordination and partnership; while enhancing partner capacities in community participation, community health insurance, block granting in education and health, Saving and Loans, leveraging of resources, and private sector partnerships. REACH will ensure that accurate, reliable and timely data is used to inform programmatic decision-making at all levels.

**Not Provided**

In COP 12 REACH Nigeria will strengthen the institutional and technical capacity of 35 sub CBOs to provide comprehensive care and support to Vulnerable Children. The REACH Nigeria sub grantees will be supported to implement the Child Protection standards. Communities would be sensitized to respond to the needs Vulnerable Children and their care givers including child protection issues. Community resource mobilization to meet the needs of vulnerable households will be supported. Community VC Committee will be established in every community. Community leaders and influential members of the community will be members of this committee. They would also ensure that their communities are responsive to child protection issues. REACH Nigeria will continue to support vulnerable families cope with challenges of providing basic needs of their children. Efforts will be put in place to continue to build the capacity of Households so that parents and caregivers are able to provide for their children's long term needs; retaining children in school, and working with local governments to establish strong child welfare and protection systems. Caregivers will receive skills acquisition trainings and seed grants. Female caregivers will be empowered to strengthen the financial base of their small businesses. These women will also receive training on entrepreneurial skills and be linked to micro credits agencies and private sector. Caregivers will be encouraged to form saving and loans groups using the WORTH model. Through this model caregivers will learn about literacy, savings and loans, small income generating activities and issues related to care and protection of children who are under their care. Caregivers will be trained and empowered to provide to children less than 5 years with required ECD support. Caregivers will receive training on IMCI, parenting skills and psychosocial support with emphasis on increasing their confidence to make choices that would ensure that the rights of their children are met. Adolescent VC will be provided with HIV and RH education. Older VC will receive vocational trainings or be encouraged to further formal education. Emphasis will be place on building the life skills of older VC to prepare them for exiting the program. Linkages will be increased to other existing program such PMI.

REACH Nigeria prevention will be focusing on providing HIV prevention services among women groups, youths in school and out of school, youths with hearing impairment, youths with visual impairment and fisher folk. In working with these groups REACH Nigeria will employ appropriate best practices in promoting HIV sexual prevention at individual and small group levels. Interventions will contextualized and based on data regarding HIV prevalence and epidemic drivers. Using combination of prevention interventions with focus on providing a Minimum Package of Intervention to each target population group in line with the National Prevention Plan, REACH Nigeria will provide HIV prevention messages to a total of 25,200 individuals. Activities will be designed to; increase knowledge and improve skill for HIV prevention at individual levels, encourage community participation and address structural barriers to HIV prevention. REACH Nigeria will achieve this working with 21 Civil Society organizations in three states of Nigeria (Ondo, Ekiti and Bayelsa States).

Individual and Group level activities: REACH Nigeria will be utilizing a combination of appropriate strategies to educate its target population. Strategy options will include different peer education models, peer education plus models and other Interpersonal communication methods to increase knowledge, improve skills, and promote appropriate behaviour changes that lessen HIV risk among different target groups.

Community level intervention: community level interventions will aim at promoting community participation, enabling environment for behaviour change, address risky cultural practices relating to childbirth, intergenerational sex, multiple sexual partnerships, early sexual debut, female circumcision, HIV testing among pregnant women, gender inequality and women, and males role and responsibilities in HIV prevention.

Structural level interventions: Structural issues identified in REACH project communities in terms of service provision and policy environment will be addressed in partnership with Civil society Organisations, and other implementing partners and government agencies such as SFH, LACA and SACA and the Ministry of Health in the focus states.

Condoms promotion will form an integral part of REACH Nigeria prevention programming among out of school youths, fisher folks and women groups. REACH NIgeria will seek to ensure that high-quality condoms are accessible to its target groups, when they need them, and that they have the knowledge and skills to use them correctly and consistently. In order to increase the knowledge of beneficiaries on condom use and it benefits, REACH Nigeria will employ multiple channels to ensure that all beneficiaries receive accurate, culture- and age-appropriate information about how male and female condoms prevent HIV infection. HIV prevention education and condom promotion will address the challenges of complex gender and cultural factors, ensuring that gender issues are not a barrier to information about and access to condoms. Such channels as peer education, printed materials and condom demonstrations at appropriate for a will be employed.

In order to increase availability of condoms to beneficiaries, REACH Nigeria will link beneficiaries with implementing partners as Society for family Health to either obtain high quality condoms free of charge or at low cost. In addition to linking up beneficiaries with other development partners, REACH Nigeria will also explore supply opportunities with State Agencies for the Control of AIDS to establish condom outlets in the various project communities.