Oxfam InternationalYouth Partnerships

Global Village ProjectXVII International AIDS Conference

3-8 August 2008Mexico City

OIYP program is made up of 300 young people, aged 18-25 from around the world, who are called Action Partners. They are working for peaceful, equitable and sustainable social change in a range of different contexts.

Young people are impacted by a lack of access to essential services and they are disproportionately impacted by key health issues such as HIV and AIDS. This puts young people in an important position to have a say about their access to appropriate services.

…I want to see PLWH in my county as in other countries, be more independent and live normal lives as possible.

Mercy Natalie Masta, 23

Papa New Guinea

…I believe all our responses towards HIV/AIDS should be human-rights based and through that we will definitely have better responses against HIV.

Ramy Nasr, 23 Egypt

In my community there are lots of key issues regarding HIV and AIDS and young people like….uneducated or illiterate…

so what we do is talk to them about it, show role plays or HIV and AIDS movies.

Rebecca Bird, 22

Solomon Islands

My organisation has beendoing puppet shows in the community. I believe by taking this strategy out in the community, I will be able to address the issue in a positive way.

Mamta Sylvia Chad, 23Fiji

HIV and AIDS issue in my community has yet got adequate attention and support from government, society, either NGOs…this issue is not merely a buzz word, but it indeed exists…

Zakiyatul Mufidah, 23 Indonesia

We have to follow cases. We have to get people tested.We have to empower morethe people living with AIDS.

Edmond Baganazi, 24Rwanda

I am involved in a lot of sensitization programs in my country. I organize trainings on HIV and AIDS for community peer educators who in turn educate their peers at the grassroots.

My organization also produces a monthly journal that gives young people an opportunity to learn more about HIV/AIDS….

Isikwenu Oghenefego,25 Nigeria

I have responsibility as a nurse, as a community leader, to protect people from HIV/AIDS.

I have to do my duty well.

Madusha Abethilaka Arachcheege, 20 Sri Lanka

•

...Actualmente trabajo dirigiendo un grupo de jóvenes los cuales todos en conjunto llevamos a cabo obras teatrales a la comunidad con temas de vulnerabilidad problemática como VIH SIDA.

Jorge Uzcátegui Pérez, 24Venezuela

I have a really neat picture book for children about HIV/AIDS translated into Makushi-Indigenous dialect (Guyana)…The book is a great example of making prevention information applicable to the local populations that

are affected by HIV/AIDS.

Jarita Greyeyes, 22Canada

I do activism for sex workers rights and queer rights.

He-Jin Kim, 24South Korea

…The latest work I have done with my community is that we had been for regional meeting with some stakeholders on positive living in regards to HIV/AIDS

Patrick Otim, 20Northern Uganda

I have initiated an income generating project where the people infected and affected with HIV and AIDS would prepare artefacts and then sell them…This has stopped stigmatization and discrimination from the rest of the community.

Emily Karechio, 25Kenya

I am a social worker interested in economic justice (by providing sustainable livelihoods to marginalised communities)…I gave less importance to HIV/AIDS issues until I realised both are closely related and the sustainability of the programme cannot be seen if HIV/AIDS is not focused.

Krishna Mohan Rao Adiraju, 23India

Drug and alcohol abuse is a fuelling agent that easily exposes us to social and health related problems and HIV/AIDS…Without appropriate knowledge on reproductive adolescence health, healthy sex practices and basic prevention methods it is very difficult for us to protect ourselves…

Henry Oti, 24

Solomon Islands

Desde el año 2002, trabajo con mi organización (Sociedad de Integracion Gay Lesbica Argentina) en brindar educación sexual para jóvenes gays para lograr el autocuidado y grupos de socialización para mejorar su autoestima y aceptación.

Pablo Daniel Britez, 25Argentina

...Above all we should make the female condom available and accessible down to the grassroot men and women. Imagine a world where women take full charge of their sexuality, and men respect women's sexual rights.

George Mike Jijita, 24 Zimbabwe

The major problem with increasing HIV AIDS rates in

Palestine are due to the myths surrounding the

disease and the social stigma with people who are infected

or living with HIV/AIDS…They believe that dying in silent

is much better than seeking treatment from this

disease…

Manar Alnatsha, 25Palestine

…As an English teacher in a High School…I organise a visit to a hospital and a day with orphan…this helps breaking the negative preconceptions people have about this issue.

Sounon Bazoumana Coulibaly, 25Ivory Coast

…One of the findings in our recent survey in youth peer education is lack of informationin this issue (HIV/AIDS) because we have remote islands where ship can’t reach there one’s in four months in a year.

Neverlyn Efo, 26 Solomon Islands

The practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGC) is one of the ways that HIV spreads in my community.

Through our work many people are now responding to the message of ending FGC…

Zuhur Yasin, 22Somaliland

Conosco personas muy sercanas a mi, viviendo con esta condicion y ellos han depositado su confianza, en mi por lo cual me gustaria compartir sus experiencias, denunciar sus inquietudes, y buscar respuestas a sus interrogantes y traer esperanza a esas comunidades donde no llegan los antirretrovirales, ni los psicologos...

Jeremy Leonel Santana Polanco, 26Dominican Republic

I am at a planning stage of a youth project, aimed at providing Sexual and Reproductive health and HIV/AIDS education to adolescents in secondary schools. The project aims to use ABC prevention strategy, plus an alternative approach to Abstinence through moral approach and motivation from successful young people.

Kant Baraka, 25Tanzania

…Africa has suffered and is still suffering of this murderer.AIDS is highly related to the poverty and ignorance and one of the well know causes of social stigma…

Osman Elmutasim Mohamed Elfadil, 20

Sudan

We (Circus Somaliland Town) held Circus show in so many towns that have limited information on HIV/AIDS… The show drew an estimated audience more than 4000 spectators in each Circus show…

Mustafa Ibrahim Yusuf, 25Somaliland