Kailahun district benefits from National HIV/AIDS Secretariat/ENCISS training
The National HIV/AIDS Secretariat (NAS) in partnership with ENCISS has ended a two days training for Chiefdom Aids Committee members at the chiefdom head quarter Barrie in Pendebu Upper Bambara chiefdom and KLDC Hall Segwebama Njaluahun Chiefdom, Kailahun district eastern Sierra Leone of which participants were drawn from Upper Bambara, Kissi Tongi, Kissi Teng, Kissi Kama, Dea, Jewie, Yawei, Mandu, Luawa Peje Bongre, Peje west, Penguia, Njaluahun and Malema Chiefdom Kailahun District eastern Sierra Leone. (photo: Participants in the NAS HIV AIDS training )
Welcoming the gathering the newly elected youth chairman and focal person of HIV and AIDS Upper Bambara chiefdom Gibrila Zedo Brima thanked the National HIV/AIDS Secretariat for organizing such a meeting in his chiefdom.
Gibrila Zedo Brima reiterated that the meeting is timely and important and that as chiefdom authorities they will give their maximum support to see that HIV/AIDS is at zero percent, he further thanked ENCISS for providing the funds to NAS as Chiefdom AIDS Committees are the entry point to the decentralized response on AIDS at the chiefdom levels.
In his statement the regional Monitoring and Evaluation Officer of National HIV/AIDS Secretariat Augustine Kemoh Lusine said that NAS is the leading institution in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Sierra Leone, which assists the Government of Sierra Leone (GOSL) to implement the National Response through a multi-sectoral approach i.e., public and private sectors, and covers many programmatic components as to Strategic Orientations as agreed by donors and technical partners. He said that their vision is towards zeroing new HIV infections, Zero Discrimination and Zero AIDS-related deaths in Sierra Leone 8 Strategic documents developed: 2011-2015 and that documents describe the unique challenges that HIV/AIDS pose to Sierra Leone’s economic and social development and how it will be addressed of which their priorities areas are Prevention of new infections, Treatment of HIV and other health-related conditions, Care and support for the infected and affected by HIV/AIDS, Policy, Advocacy, Human Rights and Legal Environment, Coordination, Decentralized Response, Resource Mobilization and Management and Research, Monitoring and Evaluation.
Lusine furthered that the current situation of HIV in Sierra Leone still stands stabilized at 1.5%, Female 1,7%, male 1.2%, Adolescent girls 1.4%, boys 0.5%, Urban 2.5%, Rural 1%, Prevalence among pregnant women attending ANC is 3.2%, 48,000 people infected, 4,000 are children and the epidemic is mixed, generalized and heterogeneous affecting different population subgroups. He said that the project title is Promoting GOSL National Policy on zero New HIV/AIDS infections among Youths and Women. The project’s objective is to combat HIV/AIDS and other diseases (MDG6) in Kailahun and Kenema district. And their major activity is the Popularization of HIV/AIDS Strategic Documents amongst youths, women and CACs, DACs members. Training of women, youths, CAC & DAC members LCs on the mainstreaming of HIV/AIDS/STI/SRH issues into Chiefdom Councils Development Plans General sensitisation of youths, women and CACs members on issues of HIV/AIDS/STI/SRH in all the Chiefdoms in Kenema and Kailahun Districts and Training of youths and women peer educators on HIV/AIDS/STI/SRH in all the Chiefdoms in Kenema and Kailahun Districts.
He concluded that they are working together in Social partnership on the Key that can unlock our potentials to achieve Zero New HIV Infections, Zero Stigma and Zero AIDS-Related Deaths by 2015 with funding from ENCISS.
In his key note address the chairman of the Kailahun District Council DAC focal Person and Development Officer on behalf of the chairman of District AIDS Committe, Eric Sam, said he is really pleased with this auspicious training of bringing together duty bearers concerned in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Kailahun District. He said that this is a clear manifestation of the importance of local leadership and involvement of stakeholders in taking ownership on issues affecting them hence the decentralized response on AIDS.
The Regional Supervisor East National AIDS control programme Abdul James presented the Local Government Response to HIV/AIDS, the act of national HIV/AIDS commission and the key national strategic documents guiding the response to HIV/AIDS in Sierra Leone while the presentation of the concept and practices of mainstreaming HIV/AIDS was done by the Regional M&E officer National AIDs Secretariat Augustine Kemoh Lusine. Lusine concluded that the project they implementing were funded by ENCISS .
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