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AAE organized a three-day consultative workshop for members of the National Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) Association's and stakeholders which was held from 10 to 21 December 2005.
According to Berhanu Zenbere, AAE HIV/AIDS Programme Officer, the Association was formed about eight months ago. He said that AAE initiated the National Network of PLWHA Associations with a view to ensuring PLWHA's meaningful involvement in national policy and advocacy issues.
Participants of the Network, including representatives of the 32 member associations, looked into ways of strengthening the Network and discussed its draft strategic plan during the workshop which was opened by the Minister of Health.
"The government has always been looking forward to such a collective effort. It is my hope that you will emerge as strong leaders and partners in fighting the epidemic. I would like to thank ActionAid Ethiopia for its engagement in such endeavours...," the Minister of Health, Dr. Tewedros Adhanom, said in his remark at the opening session of the workshop, according to Berhanu.
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There are over 2.2 million PLWHA in the country according to an official document of the Ministry of Health. The figure is, however, considered to be very much less than the actual. The source indicates that 91 percent of those infected are young and in the productive age group of 15 to 49. The pandemic has also orphaned over1.2 million while multitudes have been directly or indirectly affected.
HIV/AIDS is still surrounded by misconceptions and prejudges mainly due to horrifying interpretations and information disseminated in the past. Low access to media contributed to these misconceptions and prejudices.
All the socio-economic and other implications drew the concern of ActionAid Ethiopia, to seriously engage in activities enhancing the national response to the pandemic.
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| Positive Lives Exhibition |
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Visitor's impression
"I learnt about the exhibition from an advertisement on the Ethiopian Television. Reading the testimonies accompanying the photographs staged, I am very much impressed by the sacrifices the people living with the HIV virus made volunteering to make their sero-status public in order to save the lives of their compatriots."
"Heroism is not only about safeguarding one's territory from invaders but also about protecting one's people from a scourge like the HIV/AIDS."
"Therefore, every HIV positive person's effort to sensitize the public against the pandemic even amidst all the hostility, stigma and discrimination, has been a noble sacrifice the public would never forget."
Stop Stigma Campaign
About 1000 youth campaigners mainly from the Addis Ababa University, and public high schools in the capital took part in the 2003 summer "Campaign against Stigma, Denial and Discrimination" sensitizing residents of six major towns against HIV/AIDS.
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