SHDEPHA+ is an acronym for Service, Health, and Development for People living with HIV/AIDS. It is a national non-governmental organization, registered on 21 November 1994 with registration number SO 8216. SHDEPHA+ originated from the initiatives of fifteen people living with HIV/AIDS whose goal was to create a network and to mobilize resources to help people living with HIV/AIDS and to fight the spread of the disease. Although originally focusing on people living with HIV/AIDS, over the years SHDEPHA+ has expanded beyond HIV/AIDS and related issues to other development interventions and now covers both infected and affected by HIV/AIDS with over 65 branches countrywide. Each branch of SHDEPHA+ works independently, developing, managing and implementing its own projects; though all branches share one constitution and registration.