loveLife has a national corps of more than 1 200 full-time peer educators, known as groundBREAKERs (gBs), who volunteer for a period of one year to become leaders of HIV prevention within their communities. These young people, aged between 18 and 25, go through a series of training programmes to equip them with sexual health counselling skills and techniques for effective outreach to other young people.

These highly motivated young people conduct outreach throughout South Africa, working in loveLife Y-Centres, schools, clinics, and with youth groups in various communities. groundBREAKERs epitomise the philosophy of living a positive healthy lifestyle and are at the frontline of loveLife service delivery. Since its inception in 2001, more than 7 000 young people have graduated from the groundBREAKER programme.

groundBREAKERs are supported by approximately 6 000 to 8 000 12 to17-year-old Mpintshis (friends) every year. These young people assist gBs with running motivational programmes, promote fitness and health, challenge one to think creatively, discuss sexual health and sexuality, conduct sports and debating leagues and facilitate radio production and broadcasting.

The groundBREAKER programme aims to:

• Extend loveLife's reach locally by providing face-to-face interaction with young people to positively affect behaviour change.
• Substantially reduce the level of new HIV infection among youth, as well as reducing STIs and teenage pregnancy.
• Maximise the energy and commitment of youth to the benefit of other young people.
• Reach young people in under-served communities and offer the loveLifestyle package.
• Promote the gB programme in the public and private sector, to encourage a willingness to invest in the future of a group of trained, skilled and committed young people. This may be in the form of employment opportunities, bursaries, learnerships etc.
• Promote future opportunities for gBs by equipping them with skills.

Why 18-25 year olds?

Most (95%) fifteen year olds are HIV negative. And loveLife hopes to keep it that way. loveLife’s target age group is thus 12-17 year olds. Peer support and training is an invaluable intervention, with young people having a stronger likelihood to respond to role modeling and interaction from peers. gBs are 18 to 25 year olds who engage with their younger peers in a myriad of face-to-face interventions to effect behaviour change. Many young people are unable to continue to tertiary education, primarily due to economic constraints and also battle to find employment straight out of school. Out-of-school, unemployed young people are extremely vulnerable to the transmission of STIs and HIV/Aids, so the gB Programme provides a positive channel for young people to develop confidence, healthy attitudes and equip them with skills to sustain themselves in a brighter future.

Click here to read about the impact of the groundBREAKER programme in young people’s lives >>