... about these three little dots
It's a multi-generational global battle, at a crossroads... It's funding on hold, withheld, cut, and ruptured... It's our current moment captured by images of those holding the line...
"holding the line..." is an independent documentary photography project elevating the voices of people working on the frontline of the response to HIV across Africa. The project captures compelling visual narratives of individuals and communities across Africa who refuse to retreat, even as essential HIV funding rapidly declines. Resulting stories and photos will be shared widely and freely to amplify frontline voices and bolster the advocacy efforts of global HIV organizations.
an alarming reality...
The global HIV response faces significant funding gaps and challenges, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, where halted or diminished HIV programs threaten decades of progress.
- In January 2025, abrupt U.S. government cuts to global HIV funding through PEPFAR disrupted HIV services, severely threatening two decades of progress against the epidemic.
- An estimated 220,000 people per day, including 7,000 children, have experienced treatment interruptions, risking rapid rises in HIV transmission and AIDS-related mortality.
- Thousands of healthcare workers lost their jobs, and 36% of HIV-related organizations across 27 surveyed countries ceased operations within weeks.
Learn more about the immediate human impact of US funding cuts for HIV: amfAR report (February 2025); analysis published in the Lancet (April 2025)
the plan…
Storytelling through documentary photography – offering a powerful and humanizing approach to amplify the voices of local communities and frontline health workers to advocate for sustained global attention and funding.
- June to September 2025: Fieldwork with frontline HIV service providers and advocates to document their stories and photograph their work across Ghana, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, South Africa, Mozambique, and Mauritius.
- September onward: producing and publishing stories and photos, including through global HIV advocacy organizations and societies, media outlets, and artistic communities
who's holding the line...?
Explore the work of local organizations "holding the line..." in the fight against HIV across Africa.
Ghana
Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC)
Learn more: Instagram
Center for Popular Education and Human Rights Ghana (CEPEHRG)
Learn more: Facebook
Maritime Life Precious Foundation
Maritime is a local Non-Government Organization providing HIV/AIDS education to Key Populations in Ghana. Through community involvement, education, and peer education we aim to improve lives and ensure stigma-free health care services for the vulnerable.
Learn more: Facebook
West Africa AIDS Foundation (WAAF)
West Africa AIDS Foundation (WAAF) is a non-governmental not-for-profit organization, registered in Ghana in 1999 with the Registrations General and the Social Welfare Department. It was founded by Eddie Donton after losing his first son to sickle cell disease at the age of 7 when residing in California. As a way of grieving, Eddie decided to find a way to deliver end-of-life care to those who needed it. He set up WAAF in Ghana to serve the region of West Africa due to the desperate need for quality health care, especially for HIV and AIDS patients in the region.
Learn more: web
International Health Care Clinic (IHCC)
The International Health Care Center (IHCC) was founded in Accra, Ghana in 1998. Initially as a hospice center dedicated to the lives of terminally ill persons. Today, IHCC functions as a community clinic open to the general public for all kinds of medical treatment but with a focus on infectious diseases.
Learn more: web
Rwanda
Rwanda Network or People Living with HIV (RPP+)
At the time of creating RRP+, many people in Rwanda lacked knowledge about HIV and linked HIV with immoral behavior. Consequently, this fueled HIV related stigma and discrimination against people infected and affected by HIV. To change this situation, representatives of 175 associations of PLHIV from across the country decided in March 2003 to form a network of people living with HIV (RRP+).
Learn more: web
Dream Village
AVEGA Agahozo
AVEGA Agahozo stands as a lifeline for widows and survivors of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. Born from unimaginable tragedy, we’ve grown into a powerful force for healing, justice, and empowerment. Our name, “Agahozo,” means “a place where tears are dried” in Kinyarwanda. For 30 years, we’ve lived up to this promise, providing comprehensive support to over 25,000 widows across Rwanda’s four provinces.
Learn more: web
Uganda
The AIDS Support Organization (TASO)
Learn more: web
Most At Risk Populations Initiative (MARPI)
Learn more: web
Spectrum Uganda Initiatives
Learn more: web
Uganda Harm Reduction Network (UHRN)
Uganda Harm Reduction Network (UHRN) is a drug user led national network established in 2008 and Reg. No. INDR150983987NB under NGO Act 2016 to respond to the drug use crisis in Uganda. The network works to advocate for practical interventions aimed at supporting and addressing issues of people who use and inject drugs (PWUIDs) especially youth.
Learn more: web
Kenya
HOYMAS KENYA
HOYMAS (Health Options for Young Men on HIV/AIDS & STIs) clinic ensures that key populations have access to HIV testing, treatment and care services in an environment free of stigma and discrimination. HOYMAS has also successfully advocated for government HIV programmes tailored to the needs of at-risk groups in Kenya.
MPEG Kenya
We promote and defend sexual minorities' rights and their needs, particularly in the areas of health and sexuality, and reaffirm their agency to claim these rights.
Learn more: Instagram
Jinsiangu
Jinsiangu is a Kenyan-based organization founded in 2012 to empower and protect the rights of Intersex, Transgender, and Gender Non-Conforming (ITGNC) individuals. Through advocacy, community support, and partnerships, we strive to build a society that embraces diversity, justice, and bodily autonomy for all.
Learn more: web
Y+ Kenya
We are all about empowering young people to live their best lives, regardless of the challenges they face, including HIV/AIDS and sexual reproductive health. We are a dynamic squad of Kenyan youth who are here to share knowledge, support each other, and spread positivity. Our goal is to support young people living with and affected by HIV/AIDs in Kenya to enjoy healthy lives holistically. We are all about fostering a community and helping you in your life journey.
Learn more: web
Mauritius
Prévention Information Lutte contre le Sida (Pils)
Prevention Information Fight Against AIDS (PILS) has existed for 25 years. In its early days, the local association advocated for the fundamental right to treatment for people living with HIV. Today, it is an internationally recognized non-governmental organization (NGO) focused on key populations in Mauritius and on the care of people living with HIV and viral hepatitis, as well as key populations in Mauritius. PILS also operates regionally through the Coalition Plus Indian Ocean Platform and worldwide through the Coalition PLUS network.
Learn more: web
South Africa
Soweto HIV/AIDS Counselor Association (SOHACA)
Learn more: Facebook
Access Chapter 2
Access Chapter 2 was initiated to promoting the human rights and empowerment of women and girls, and LGBTI+ person in all their diversities, facilitate participation of civil society organisations at a local, national, regional and international level by creating space and coordinating platforms for engagement on governance, policy and accountability processes and by developing innovative and active empowerment for transformation knowledge for community systems strengthening and build solidarity within civil society and other various sectors.
Learn more: web
Mozambique
AMASI
AMASI is a Mozambican organization dedicated to empowering the most vulnerable communities by promoting sustainable access to water, sanitation, health, and social protection to create a future of hope and opportunity.
Learn more: web
Ovarelelana Association
The OVARELELANA Association exists to strengthen people's participation in society. It is an organization that promotes the unity of individuals in support of just causes, whether environmental, social, or humanitarian. Together, we strive to build a more supportive community committed to collective well-being.
Learn more: web
Fundação para o Desenvolvimento da Comunidade (FDC)
The Foundation for Community Development (FDC) is a non-profit public utility institution that aims to strengthen the capacities of disadvantaged communities, with the aim of overcoming poverty and promoting social justice in Mozambique.
Learn more: web
Reencontro
The HIV/AIDS pandemic is a serious threat facing Mozambique today. Among the victims are children, who are left without the support they need to grow and thrive following the loss of their parents to the disease. Since its inception in 1998, Reencontro has been working to alleviate the plight of orphaned children by providing access to basic services and social assistance through community-based care. We currently assist over 7,000 children in Southern Mozambique.
Learn more: web
Lambda
about me...
Ben Eveslage is the project lead for "holding the line..."
I’m Ben Eveslage, a global health strategist and photographer. For over a decade, I’ve partnered with communities across 45+ countries to strengthen HIV programs and public health efforts. Alongside this professional journey, photography has always been my creative anchor, a way to explore, honor, and amplify the quiet beauty and resilience found in everyday moments. So when I began to see the scale and speed of recent HIV funding cuts, I knew I couldn’t just watch from the sidelines. Now, I’m bringing these two worlds together with "holding the line...". Connect with me on LinkedIn or Instagram.
Help amplify these important stories! Contributing on GoFundMe helps cover project-related expenses including field-work, engaging local organizations, producing photos and stories, and dissemination.
get in touch...
Click the "contact" button below to learn more, ask a question, or explore collaboration. Messages submitted on the contact form are sent directly to Ben's personal email.
👋 Let's talk! Here are some ideas...
- "Can I use some of your photos for an advocacy project, publication, event...?"
- "Can I share your stories on my platform, publication, channel...?"
- "How can I help ? I feel like I could contribute ______ ?"
- "How can I make a donation to one of the organizations / individuals featured on "holding the line..."?"
- "I represent brand or company, we'd be interested to collaborate with "holding the line" or sponsor your work. Can we talk?"
Feel free to ask any question!