Delivering food and medication to help YPLHIV through the lockdown
Delivering food and medication to help YPLHIV through the lockdown
Oscar and many other ambassadors have registered success in their voluntary initiative to sustain the lives of their peers living with HIV during the lockdown.
In Kasese, Micheal Ssenyonga managed to lobby for food supplies for 300 adolescents and YPLHIV, while Peter Kabagambire and Ismail Hirerimana have supported Kabale District to deliver ART and TB treatment to 5 nearby districts of Kisoro, Rukiiga, Ntungamo, Rubanda and Kanungu. This gets more interesting considering that at first, the belief in the possibility was low.
Delivering vital medication by bicycle
Peter Kabagambire from Kabale remembers:
Yes we were concerned that the lockdown would get many young people living with HIV missing their apportionments, but the idea of delivering drugs to clients seemed crazy
Well, look how far we have come!
Young people have the power
Currently, there are 62 peer leaders doing this great work in 35 districts. As of last week, they were able to reach 376 clients with ARVs drugs, 12 clients with TB drugs as well as 11,664 condoms distributed in different communities.
Indeed, young people have the power to change the narrative. As Samantha Osoru, an ambassador from Arua District puts it,
As a young person, you don’t have to wait for something to be done for you, you need to lead in doing something that serves your community – that is why I chose to deliver these drugs to my peers.
More stories
You can read more of these stories on the website of Aidsfonds partner UNYPA, the Uganda Network of Young People Living with HIV and AIDS.
