HIV/AIDS prevention among young people in Bitola - Get more knowledge and skills
Participant: Biljana Vasilevska
Organisation: Centre for Human Rights “AMOS” Bitola, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Project idea in brief
Youth in action :)
The idea was to prevent HIV infection among young people in Bitola, by increasing the knowledge and skills of 300 young people from 15 – 25 years of age that live in Bitola about HIV risks, ways of transmission and ways of protection by:
- Establishing a network of young peer educators that will provide information and education related to HIV infection;
- Educating 300 young people in secondary schools in Bitola and in other NGOs, on HIV/AIDS through peer educational sessions;
- Raising public awareness on specific ways for protection of young people concerning HIV infection and promoting the development of a sense of an individual responsibility (inspiring behavioral changes)
with the help of the following activities;
- Five days training of 15 peer educators;
- 15 training sessions undertaken by the peer educators (each per minimum of 20 people);
- Preparing and printing educational materials;
- 2 media shows addressing HIV infection and the right of special protection for young people concerning the infection;
- Street actions with media coverage;
- Distribution of prepared informational and educational materials and condoms among young people in Bitola;
- Condom party at the end of the project.
Social rights addressed:
- Sexual and reproductive rights of young people;
- The right to protection of health;
- The right to education and information
Target group: 300 young people from 15 – 25 years of age that live in Bitola
Local authorities involved: The Council of Bitola
The current stage of the project: Finished
Follow-up: For now only few follow up activities are specified but not irreplaceable:
- Writing an article in web and printed newspapers about the ENTER project, HIV prevention project and the impact and changes that this projects made on a local and international level which will contribute to the promotion of our work, the ENTER project and its visibility and transparency on local level and probably will contribute to making a “safe” environment for our future steps.
- Workshops on social rights;
- Workshops on youth policy and youth participation;
- 10 training sessions in secondary schools and NGOs with the accent to Roma population, undertaken by trained peer educators (each per minimum of 20 people);
- Writing articles for a local newspaper addressing HIV infection and prevention, social rights of young people, youth policy and youth participation;
- Skype informing and counselling;
- Development of youth friendly service centre in the offices of AMOS which will be governed by the young people within our NGO and where young people will have a chance to discuss every youth issue that catches their attention and will be informed on HIV infection and prevention, sexual and reproductive rights, human/social rights as well as will be informed on training possibilities, voluntary work possibilities, employment possibilities..... will be linked with needed institutions etc;
- Meetings with local authorities, NGO representatives and other relevant actors for initiating and lobby for renewal and some changes in the Action plan on prevention on HIV among people in Bitola;
- Meetings with local authorities, NGO representatives and other relevant actors for initiating and lobby for changes regarding the practice in the implementation of the Action plan for realization of the National Youth Strategy on local level;
- Street actions with media coverage;
- Work in coalition with other NGOs, local authorities, and other relevant actors in integrating sexual education in schools
