Preventing HIV Infection Among Young People

PREVENTING HIV INFECTION AMONG YOUNG PEOPLE
 UNFPA strategy in preventing HIV/AIDS among young people addresses three main areas, which influence young people's behaviour: Knowledge, attitude and practice. As such, UNFPA aims at increasing knowledge, building skills and improving services related to HIV/AIDS prevention.

Programmes to reduce the spread of HIV infection should give high priority to information, education and communication campaigns to raise awareness and emphasize behavioural change. Sex education and information should be provided to both those infected and those not infected and especially to adolescents. (Excerpt from the ICPD Programme of Action 1994, from paragraph 8.31)

Situation Analysis: Vulnerable Youth

 In Kyrgyzstan today the number of  young people aged from 11 to 24 years old makes up about 37% of the general population. Unfavourable social and economic conditions in the country have made young people particularly vulnerable to HIV/AIDS. According to official figures, the number of people living with HIV/AIDS in Kyrgyzstan is 1499 in February 2008. However UNESCO's estimation of the real number is at least ten times higher. It is a disturbing fact that 52% of HIV-infected people are among young people aged from 15 to 29 years old. Despite the fact that the main way of passing on the HIV infection is still through intravenous methods (74%), there has also been a rise in the number of sexually transmitted cases.

An increase in sexually transmitted diseases has been observed in young people from the ages of 15-24 years, such as gonorrhoea (642 cases) and syphilis (640 cases); the number of cases of early unwanted pregnancies in girls under 18 (800 births a year), and practically the same number of registered abortions.

With this in view, complex education on matters of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and the introduction of services orientated on young people has become extremely pressing. Unfortunately ethnic and social foundations, which are still in place in Kyrgyzstan, at times hinder this.

Adolescents are a very vulnerable group and questions about the protection of their health remain unresolved. As a result reforms in the public health service in terms of helping adolescents and giving specialist gynaecological help to girls have been abolished. The abolishment of the Institute for Doctors of Adolescents has meant that adolescents have been put on a par with adult patients and devoid of rights to special medical help and consultations.

Sexual education in secondary schools was in the majority of cases chaotic and there was not a systematic approach. The imperfections in the programmes and teaching methods, the free interpretation of the divisions, the lack of methodical literature and textbooks, the lack of preparation by the teachers and at times their absence has not enabled adolescents to receive proper information about reproductive health. Currently amongst young people in Kyrgyzstan there are more risks connected with health and significantly less support than there should be.

On the ground, UNDPA is:

Spreading vital information by:

-         Developing and distributing brochures with accurate information on HIV/AIDS

-         Participating in nationwide awareness-raising campaigns, in cooperation with the government, non-governmental organizations, international donors and other UN agencies

-         Using entertainment-education techniques, such as the production of soap operas or youth radio programmes related to HIV/AIDS

Educating young people:

-         By organizing peer-to-peer training sessions

-         By giving technical and financial help to NGOs, which encourage young people to take part in HIV prevention work

-         By supporting educational programmes for school teachers on sexual and reproductive health issues for adolescents

Improving services for young people:

-         By creating youth friendly centres which provide confidential, non-judgemental, professional, accessible and affordable services to young people in all regions of the country

-         By supporting the integration of volunteer confidential counselling and treatment into the healthcare system

  The peer-to-peer network

Peer-to-peer education has become one of the most widespread methods for solving the problems of SRH. Young people prefer to discuss their sexual behaviour and other delicate questions with their contemporaries than with their parents or other adults. This is the main principle of peer-to-peer education - youth education by their contemporaries. However, its success depends on the preparation and support of its trainers and by providing them with essential materials, monitoring and feedback. With this in view, UNFPA has created a peer-to peer education network (Y-PEER), which offers training, guidance, a website and other resources.

More than four years have passed since Y-PEER has been created in Kyrgyzstan. Its aim is to expand the rights and opportunities of young people, for them to exchange information and experiences and to develop skills in order to change risk related behaviour. The network provides opportunities for dialogue and exchanges of opinions between young people taking part in the peer-to-peer programme and improves the quality of education and knowledge on SRH issues.

In four years of existence in Kyrgyzstan the Y-PEER networks have achieved the following results:

1. More than forty organizations, working with peer-to-peer programmes have taken part and used the Y-PEER network resources. NGOs have successfully used the resources. They have the most sufficient and professional information base for reproductive health education, prevention of HIV/AIDS, drug addiction and risk behaviour. The NGOs work very successfully with adolescents, realizing that youth participation enables them to create, plan and introduce very effective training programmes.

2. A stable basis has been formed for the network's development in the country and support for the trainers in peer-to-peer education. Currently a systematic database is available to people constantly using the network, which is regularly updated.

3. More than twenty modules have been developed on the prevention of HIV/STD, reproductive health, non-risk behaviour, contraceptives and reproductive rights; the guidelines for the trainers who work according to the peer-to-peer system in Russian and Kyrgyz languages; methodical and visual and video aids were used for skill training and the interactive education of young people for the prevention of STD

4. In 2007 120 young people and young volunteers from 23 organizations took part in events organized by the network on a national level. The volunteers were introduced to international experience by the network. More than 1000 young people and adolescents from all the regions of Kyrgyzstan took part in cascade training sessions organized by participants on the ground.

5. In the country a united team of trainers has been established for peer-to-peer education.  The trainers uphold contacts and exchange experiences. Trainers exchange information between organizations.

6. In 2007 young trainers acquired a set of practical handbooks and textbooks. "The trainer's chest" was issued - a set of textbooks and visual aids.

Several organizations support the institutional memory of the Y-PEER network Kyrgyzstan. A database of success stories from trainers and the programme as a whole has been created and is constantly updated, the network's traditions and attributes are also maintained.

The education system is currently using the peer-to-peer education resource. The peer-to-peer system was introduced into the State programme as a warning against HIV/AIDS and its social and economic consequences in the Kyrgyz Republic (2006-2010) as an effective component of the educational and preventative programmes. The national strategy for reproductive health also includes peer-to peer in the preventative programmes for young people and adolescents. The system has been integrated into programmes for sexual education in pilot schools as part of a World Health Organization project "Healthy schools" and has been widely used in the UNFPA project "Healthy lycees". Currently teachers from many schools are using manuals, which have been developed and issued by the network for trainers.

For more information on Y-PEER-internatonal: www.youthpeer.org

For more information on Y-PEER - Kyrgyzstan www.y-peer.kg 

 Approximate annual budget, from regular resources: USD 150 000