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In 2017, the Coalition for Children Affected by AIDS (the Coalition) established an Ambassador Programme with the goal of strengthening the voices of community HIV and AIDS advocates. Since then, Coalition Ambassadors have spoken about their own experience, and that of their peers, at global advocacy and learning events, and in global media.
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Recently, we conducted a comprehensive process to identify a new Ambassador, one who has a set of experiences and challenges not spoken of often enough: a young, HIV positive mother. Now, we are very excited to introduce you to our newest Ambassador, Miriam Hasasha. Learn more about her below.
It is populations like the young, HIV positive mothers that Miriam represents – populations that continue to be left behind in the pursuit of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and inclusion within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - about which the Coalition is particularly concerned. It is not just young, HIV-affected mothers, but the millions of other children and adolescents, and their families, that are outside the reach of mainstream programs whom are the focus of our efforts.
Now is the time to escalate advocacy efforts for those most vulnerable to the impacts of HIV. Below, you will see the many activation points coming up throughout the rest of 2019 at which we have an opportunity to speak with one voice, sharing the Coalition’s recommendations and calling upon governments and donors to take the actions necessary to reach all children affected by HIV.
In order to support you in these efforts, we have produced a social media toolkit intended to help you to amplify these messages. You may also want to share this video from our Ambassador Mother, Clara Banya of the International Community of Women Living with HIV and AIDS, in which she discusses those left behind by the HIV and broader development responses.
Please be sure to stay in touch through this newsletter (subscribe here), visit our website, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @ChildrenandHIV.
Sincerely,
Corinna Csaky, Coalition Manager
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Meet Miriam Hasahsa
We are very excited to introduce you to our newest Ambassador, Miriam Hasasha. Miriam is 18 years old and lives in Uganda with her three-year-old son. Among the many accomplishments she has achieved in her young life, Miriam is a Mentor Mother with TEENS Uganda and a peer educator with Uganda Network of Young People Living with HIV/AIDS (UNYPA). Through candidly sharing her own experience, Miriam has become a passionate advocate for social change, working to empower fellow adolescents to make choices that will positively impact their lives. We will share more about Miriam very soon!
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Coalition Ambassador Clara Banya's New Video on Those Being Left Behind
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In a new video, Coalition Ambassador, Clara Banya asks, “How can we end AIDS by 2030 if we are leaving an entire populations behind?” Hear Clara talk about the importance of including children in the global response here.
Harnessing Momentum to Ensure UHC and Inclusion for HIV-Affected Children & Adolescents
Coalition member, Cecilia Kihara from Frontline Aids, recently published an article on Alliance Magazine’s website on making the most of key global health milestones taking place in 2019 in order to make progress for children and adolescents affected by HIV and AIDS. Read the article here.
Prevent, Find, Link & Retain: The Essential Role of OVC Programming in HIV Epidemic Control
In May, Coalition member, Catholic Relief Services and the Orphans and Vulnerable Children Task Force hosted a meeting in Washington, D.C. titled, “Prevent, Find, Link and Retain: The essential role of OVC programming in HIV epidemic control.” Presentations from the event are available here.
Highlights from Hilton Foundation's Young Children Affected by HIV/AIDS Convening
The Coalition Manager, Corinna Csaky, participated in a recent convening focused on Young Children Affected by HIV/AIDS. The meeting, hosted by Coalition member Conrad N. Hilton Foundation in Naivasha, Kenya, brought together grantees and other key stakeholders to highlight best practices, share learnings, and provide opportunities for collaboration on Early Childhood Development, particularly with regard to responsive caregiving. In a recent blog post, Corinna shared highlights and key take aways from this convening.
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Lancet Series: Communicating with Children About Life Threatening Conditions
In a new Lancet series, Dr. Alan Stein and colleagues outline suggested guidelines for talking to children about life-threatening illness. The series includes a framework to guide healthcare professionals in helping families with this difficult task. The authors also call for a global movement to enable children, parents, and healthcare workers to help make these seemingly impossible conversations possible. The series is available here.
UNAIDS Surveys on Community Needs & Approaches
UNAIDS’ Community Mobilization team has put together a short survey on the definition of “community-led HIV responses” available in English, Spanish, French, and Russian. Take the survey here.
In addition, UNAIDS launched a Universal Health Coverage survey for communities living with, affected by, and who care about HIV. The survey is aimed at collecting data on the experiences, needs, and priorities of communities regarding national and global processes to provide healthcare to all. The results of this survey can be found in this report.
Hesperian Health Guides
Hesperian Health Guides on Helping Children Live with HIV is a new, innovative community health guide, designed to empower families and communities affected by HIV in their efforts to support children’s well-being and healthy development.
Video on Community Based Approaches
Funders Concerned About AIDS recently produced a video highlighting best practices for grant makers and grant recipients in implementing community-based approaches. Watch the video here.
Global Gag Impact
PAI has produced this analysis and infographic as a means to helping the community further understand recent U.S.’s announcements related to the Global Gag Rule.
Global Fund Updates
amfAR has produced a new infographic highlighting the Global Fund’s investment in antiretrovirals across several major PEPFAR countries.
In addition, Friends of the Global Fight has shared key takeaways from the Global Fund’s 41st Board meeting.
Frontline AIDS Issues Call to Action at Women Deliver
On the Women Deliver Power Stage, Frontline AIDS Executive Director, Christine Stegline, presented "We All Want to Fit In, Don't We?" in which she indicated that we will not end HIV until women are able to control their own lives, including their sexual health. She also asked attendees to pledge to end gender inequality.
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| Summer 2019 |
- Implementing the Nurturing Care Framework in Countries with a High Burden of HIV. Organized by WHO and UNICEF, this workshop, taking place July 1 -2, seeks to develop guidance to leverage existing HIV programmes and to promote integration with the Early Childhood Development platform. More information is available here.
- High Level Political Forum on SDGs. The seventh session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development takes place from July 9 – 15 and will address the theme, “Empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality.” The programme is available here.
- 5th HEU Child and Adolescent Workshop. CIPHER, in partnership with the WHO, UNICEF, the Pediatric HIV/AIDS Cohort Study, and MassGeneral Hospital for Children, will host the 5th HEU Child and Adolescent Workshop in Mexico City on Sunday, July 21, just prior to the IAS Conference. Register here.
- IAS Science Conference. Registration for the 10th IAS Conference on HIV Science, taking place in Mexico City between July 21 through 24, is available here.
- AIDS Impact. The 2019 AIDS Impact Conference, taking place in London from July 29 – 31, will promote pioneering work on understanding the dynamics of a changing epidemic. A key focus will be consideration of new choices for HIV - for prevention, treatment, care and strategic planning. Learn more here.
- REPSSI PSS Forum. The 2019 REPPSI Psychosocial Support Forum, “Breaking Barriers…Creating Connections,” is taking place in Namibia August 27 – 29. Register here.
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| Fall 2019 |
- International Workshop On HIV & Adolescence. The 3rd International Workshop on HIV & Adolescence will be held October 2 - 4 in Nairobi, Kenya and is an inclusive summit for multidisciplinary experts working with adolescents affected by HIV. The objective is to share experiences, knowledge, and best practices with the aim of defining a pathway forward for optimizing care for adolescents living with HIV. Learn more here.
- Social Protection Week. Taking place November 25 – 29, this is an annual meetings of the various networks that the International Labour Organization has developed as part of the multi-stakeholder partnership for SDG 1.3. It will culminate with the organization of a global conference on “100 years of social security: the road to universal social protection” that will take stock of the national/regional conferences outcomes. Learn more here.
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