Angela McBride: Redefining harm reduction in South Africa

Angela McBride’s relationship with drugs began in her early teens as a way to cope with deep-rooted trauma.

Through her lived experience and self-reflection, Angela grew conscious of how women who use drugs were stigmatised in South African society.

Angela studied at the University of Pretoria between 2011 and 2013. Three years later, she took on roles as a peer educator and later as a coordinator for needle and syringe programmes, as well as peer-involved harm reduction projects in South Africa. It was during this time that Angela’s innate gift for communication and leadership began to flourish.

The programme that I worked for was predominantly peer-led and peer-run, which is really inspirational and spoke a lot about the importance of meaningful involvement of peers. It was very eye-opening.Angela

Her strong ethical instincts soon made her a vocal spokesperson against the injustices faced by women who use drugs. Angela fought against the victimisation of women by law enforcement, discriminatory policies, and deeply ingrained societal biases. She stood up to demand civil rights, personal sovereignty and self-actualisation for women.

Angela’s determination led her to participate in South Africa’s first needle and syringe programme. She played a key role in the development and expansion of vital programmes and services and the amplification of women’s voices in harm reduction spaces and interventions.

Since 2019, Angela has been the executive director of the South African Network of People who Use Drugs (SANPUD). Her ability to balance the holistic aspects of harm reduction with the grittier business of political activism has won her both regional and global recognition.

Today, Angela serves on Hepatitis C Portfolio Community Advisory Board (CAB), hosted by the International Network of People who Use Drugs (INPUD), a forward-thinking group of community leaders and civil society representatives, researchers and healthcare professionals working on Unitaid’s portfolio of hepatitis C grants, including Frontline AIDS’ Innovate, Involve and Inspire, a community-led harm reduction programme.

Angela occupies a unique position on the CAB, mediating between the South African CAB and the global CAB. This cross-pollination of ideas strengthens both boards, as each learns from the other.

I think it’s really cool that it’s a two-way street. You know, we’re learning, able to take info from the global Community Advisory Board to the South Africa board, but also being able to take info and lessons learned to the global one. It’s really nice to see that crossover.”Angela

Most important to Angela is that the CAB remains as approachable and inclusive as possible. She advocates for simplifying language and minimising procedural barriers to ensure everyone feels confident and engaged.

“I still struggle with a lot of words. I had to Google them, you know, and it can get frustrating. And if someone doesn’t have that [online] access, it can be quite exclusionary,” says Angela. “And it can be quite frustrating because there’ve been many times when I’ve sat and read a document, and I actually just give up because I’m like, I don’t get this. It’s like I can’t fully absorb it. But being able to look at a document and help shape it so that it can be understood a little bit easier is amazing.”

Angela hopes that her work on the CAB fosters firmer commitment from funders and state bodies, a meaningful debate on drug decriminalisation, and increasing access to psychosocial services for people who use drugs.

Angela McBride is the Executive Director of the South African Network of People who Use Drugs (SANPUD). In 2024’s Jude Byrne Emerging Female Leader Award, Angie was given an inaugural Special Recognition commendation. She also serves on the Hepatitis C Portfolio Community Advisory Board, providing guidance on Unitaid grants implemented by Frontline AIDS, PATH, Population Services International (PSI), Médecins du Monde in Egypt, Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria. India, Georgia, Armenia, South Africa, Tanzania, Vietnam and Ukraine.