Champion-ID

A tattooed hand holding a selection of pills to treat HIV in West Papua.

Implemented by Indonesia AIDS Coalition (IAC), the Improve Children living with HIV’s Welfare, Livelihood and Protection through Multisectoral Collaboration project will focus on ensuring all children living with HIV in Sorong (Southwest Papua) and Manokwari (West Papua) are supported to start and continue their treatment and live healthy lives. It relies on community health workers who use their community networks to find children living with HIV and pregnant women. They will be equipped with HIV knowledge and communication skills to deliver educational messages on the importance of knowing your HIV status as well as starting and staying on treatment.

IAC has forged strong partnerships with the communities, District Health Offices, and two of the largest church affiliations in Tanah Papua. In collaboration with the District Health Office the project adopts the existing method of training medical ethics that the IAC has established with the Ministry of Health and that is endorsed by the Executive Office of the President.

Time frame

2024-2025

Communities

Children

Budget

€ 107,000

Countries

Indonesia

Background

In contrast to other regions in Indonesia, the HIV epidemic in Tanah Papua continues to increase, with a prevalence rate of 2.3%. According to the Ministry of Health’s data, there are around 26,000 people living with HIV in Papua, whereas 16,000 of them have entered the AIDS phase. The majority of infections occur among native Papuans which means that HIV evolves as a generalised epidemic and significantly increases the risk of HIV among women and children. The latest report from the District Health Office in Sorong shows a 3% positivity rate on children (aged 0–19) and 1% on pregnant women, while Manokwari reported a 3% and a 2%, respectively.

Even though there have been positive steps, there are still a number of obstacles in Tanah Papua:

  • Scarcity of HIV services and the uneven distribution of HIV prevention, testing, and treatment facilities due to geographical constraints
  • Stigma & discrimination, and especially for women, gender inequality and gender-based violence prevent them from seeking HIV-related health services
  • Health services are yet to be sensitized on HIV issues and able to provide child-friendly services
  • Lack of outreach activities for non-key populations groups including pregnant women results in a low understanding of reproductive health
  • Lack of child-friendly HIV medication
Objectives
  • To ensure all children living with HIV in Sorong (Southwest Papua) and Manokwari (West Papua) are supported to start and continue their treatment and live healthy lives.
  • Community system strengthening is one of the key strategies of IAC. Through support groups, IAC envisions community members who are aware of their rights and capable of self-advocacy.
  • With the campaign to support the reduction of stigma and discrimination, the social environment is expected to be more inclusive of people living with HIV, especially children, hence increasing their willingness to seek treatments and health services.
About the Kids to Care model

The Aidsfonds Kids to Care model empowers communities to strengthen the links between communities and health facilities to find, test, treat and retain children, and pregnant and lactating mothers, living with HIV in care. The Kids to Care model is built on the following foundation principles:

  • Community-owned and community-led
  • Builds on existing community structures
  • Child and family centred
  • Builds on government frameworks and policies
  • Key stakeholders are meaningfully involved from the beginning
  • Interventions are informed by data
  • Committed to sustainability and long-term support

More about the Kids to Care model can be found here

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News

Aidsfonds Launches ‘Bringing Kids to Care’ project in Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, and Indonesia/West Papua

Aidsfonds Launches ‘Bringing Kids to Care’ project in Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, and Indonesia/West Papua

We proudly announce four new partners who will address the critical paediatric HIV gaps identified in Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia and Indonesia/West Papua. Coalition of Women Living with HIV and AIDS, Action for Community Care, Pride Community Health Organization, and the Indonesia AIDS Coalition bring unique strengths, expertise, and a shared dedication to improving paediatric HIV care and support in these new ‘Kids to Care’ projects.

Read more about Aidsfonds Launches ‘Bringing Kids to Care’ project in Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, and Indonesia/West Papua
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Toolkit

The Kids to Care Toolkit

The Kids to Care Toolkit

Are you working in paediatric HIV programming? The Kids to Care Toolkit might be of great support to you. This toolkit has been developed to provide support for those who want to implement a community-based model to strengthen paediatric HIV care that is based on evidence and best practice.

Read more about The Kids to Care Toolkit

Our partner

Partner with us!

Aidsfonds is interested in working together to further strengthen community leadership, increase HIV prevention choices, and improve treatment outcomes and quality of life of people living with or exposed to HIV. We want to talk to anyone who shares our dream and wants to join us on a journey toward a world free of AIDS.

Get in touch!

Get involved
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