The Desmond Tutu Health Foundation (DTHF) is a registered non-profit company established in association with the Desmond Tutu HIV Centre, an accredited research centre within the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town (UCT).

Bridging rigorous academic research with community development programmes, the DTHF collaborates with those most at risk to find innovative solutions in the prevention and treatment of HIV and related infections.

From small beginnings in the 1990s as the HIV Research Unit at Somerset Hospital under the directorship of Professor Robin Wood, the DTHF was subsequently established at its present headquarters at UCT in 2004. The HIV Research Unit was the first public clinic in South Africa to offer antiretroviral therapy to those living with HIV.

Well-connected to international research networks, the DTHF is an influential stakeholder in the global HIV arena.

They have a robust policy in support of equity, diversity and inclusion. The DTHF is also conscious of the Environmental impact of their operations and they aim to run their business in a manner that respects the environment.