Accоrding tо the UNAIDS 95-95-95 tаrgets, cоuntries should аim thаt 95% of people who are living with HIV to know their HIV status, 95% of people who know that they are living with HIV to be on lifesaving antiretroviral treatment, and 95% of people who are on treatment to be virally suppressed by 2025. These targets are also included in South Africa’s National Strategic Plan for HIV, TB and STIs 2023-2028. South Africa is on track to meet the first of these three targets with an estimated 95.4% of people living with HIV in 2023 having been diagnosed. An estimated 78.7% of people who have been diagnosed with HIV were on treatment in 2023. In other words, more than one in five people who know they are living with HIV are not taking treatment. On the third target, an estimated 91.3% of people who are on HIV treatment are virally suppressed. However, this estimate decreases to 68.6% if all people who are living with HIV but are not on treatment are included. An international non-governmental organisation (NGO) is planning to embark on a project to expand access to antiretroviral treatment across South Africa, particularly in provinces with a low treatment coverage. The project management team has decided to conduct a needs assessment before they initiate the project planning process. Discuss the rationale and benefits of conducting a thorough needs assessment before implementing the project. Your response should include examples of data that can be collected as part of the assessment.