VETAID marks World AIDS Day
1 December 2008
Monday 1 December is the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day. The annual event is an opportunity for individuals and organisations across the globe to bring attention to the global AIDS epidemic.
The theme for World AIDS Day 2008 is ‘Lead – Empower – Deliver’, highlighting both the political leadership needed in the response to HIV/AIDS, and celebrating the leadership that has been witnessed at all levels of society.
Globally, there are an estimated 33 million people living with HIV/AIDS. Africa, which accounts for only 10% of the world’s population, remains the global epicentre of the epidemic, with over two-thirds of people living with HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. This means that the world’s poorest populations, who are least able to cope with the epidemic, are those most affected.
AIDS remained the leading cause of premature death among adults in most of sub-Saharan Africa. In Kenya and Tanzania, two of the countries where VETAID works, there are over 2.5 million people living with HIV/AIDS.
For the rural communities we work with, the epidemic is having a severe impact on their ability to farm their land or care for their livestock effectively. The loss of labour if a member of the family becomes ill can leave them unable to cultivate their land.
Similarly, orphan- or grandparent-headed families have a reduced physical ability to farm the land in comparison to the adult members of the family who have been victims of the HIV pandemic. Children often have to drop out of school in order to ensure that the land is cultivated. But without their parents to show them farming skills, they lack the knowledge to do this effectively.
Another example of the impact upon these families is the difficulties that women, orphaned children (especially girls) face in claiming the family land after the death of a family member.
For the past four years, VETAID has focused on the needs of people affected by HIV/AIDS in the areas where we work in Kenya and Tanzania. This has included HIV/AIDS orphans; grandparents and other guardians of AIDS orphans; and young people who were orphaned as children.
In Kenya, VETAID works to mitigate HIV/AIDS impacts in agricultural development. This is done in a number of ways including:
- Training in farming skills such as making compost and cereal transplanting
- Providing oxen and training the community in their use in ploughing their land. This greatly reduces the time and energy required to prepare the land by hand.
- Training orphans and their carers in simple animal health procedures like de-worming, vaccinating chickens against Newcastle Disease, tick control etc.
- Ensuring that orphaned youth are recognised as the owners of family property e.g. livestock
- Enabling beneficiaries to manage a small kitchen garden for the supply of fresh vegetables to people living with HIV/AIDS.
As a result of this work, families affected by or living with HIV/AIDS are more able to produce a reliable source of food and income from their land. This improved food security ensures that AIDS orphans do not have to drop out of school due to hunger.
Because the orphaned children continue to live and work on their parents’ land, they are more easily integrated into the community and the risk of the land being grabbed by the other relatives is reduced. In addition, there is a general reduction in the level of stigma associated with HIV/AIDS within the community. People affected by HIV/AIDS feel that they are contributing to the community and become more integrated and accepted by their neighbours.
Our innovative approach to tackling HIV/AIDS through agriculture has been recognized at national, regional and international level. VETAID’s Dr Gabriel Turasha took our findings to a meeting with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in December 2007. Other organisations are interested in setting up projects based upon our work in other areas of east Africa.
VETAID’s Titus Wambeti, who works with communities affected by HIV/AIDS in Kenya ’s Eastern Province explains the importance of VETAID’s work: “Often we see children and young people who have been orphaned by HIV having to live on the streets, where they can become involved in risky behaviour which increases the chances of them contracting the HIV virus.
By working with these young people and those who care for them, VETAID helps them to provide themselves with a reliable source of food and the ability to earn a small income. As well as improving their health through a more nutritious and reliable diet, this also prevents them from becoming involved in activities which would increase the possibilities of them contracting HIV. We also work with the youth groups to inform them about HIV/AIDS and how it is transmitted in order that they have the knowledge to avoid putting themselves at risk."
Case study
Salom Jeremiah is 29 years old. She is HIV positive.
Her husband abandoned her when he discovered she had HIV, leaving her alone to care for their two children.
Weakened by HIV, and with no support from her family, Salom could not farm her land. Because of this, she was unable to provide enough food for herself or her children. She was bedridden when members of the ‘Hope’ community group heard about her situation and took her to the local hospital.
When Salom was well enough to leave hospital, she became a member of the ‘Hope’ community group in Tengeru village. The group is made up of around 25 people who are affected by HIV/AIDS; either they themselves are living with the condition or are supporting infected family members.
VETAID works with the group members to enable them to successfully grow crops on their land. Salom is now able to grow her own crops, providing her with a reliable source of food. This has ensured that her medication can be fully effective, while also increasing her strength as her diet has improved.
