HIV Prevention for Vulnerable Adolescent Girls

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Date of Operation: 2007 – 2013

Primary Implementing Partner: Population Council

Other Implementing Partner(s): Ethiopian Orthodox Church

Regions of Operation: Addis Ababa, Amhara, and Tigray

Goal:

Prevent new HIV infections, and promote abstinence and mutual faithfulness by addressing the HIV risk among the most vulnerable adolescent girls and their partners, including orphans

Objectives:

  • Increase comprehensive HIV prevention activities for adolescent girls and their partners engaged in early marriage,
  • Provide technical leadership on gender and early marriage programming to reduce the risk and vulnerability of adolescent girls and young women to HIV infection
  • Provide services and referrals to female orphans and vulnerable children who have migrated to low income urban centers

Description:

The HIV Prevention for Vulnerable Adolescent Girls project includes activities to delay girls’ marriage and support girls who are already married, outreach to husbands of adolescent girls, and support to poor urban girls, most of whom are migrants from rural areas. The project provides emotional and social support; non-formal education; HIV prevention information; livelihoods training (including financial literacy and entrepreneurship); referrals to post-rape counseling, health services, voluntary counseling and testing (VCT), prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT), and antiretroviral therapy (ART) to vulnerable girls who have been exposed to early marriage.

The project has created links with economic growth programs specializing in livelihoods for vulnerable populations to provide guidance on entrepreneurship training and employment strategies and resources for these girls.

Girls’ groups have been established for the most vulnerable, out-of-school, and migrant girls, including domestic workers. The groups, led by adult female mentors, provide a safe space for girls to discuss their problems, obtain peer support, and engage with supportive adults. Providing non-formal education to girls in these groups allow them to catch up with their interrupted or missed education. Different types of livelihood skills training are given to enable them to work and support themselves and therefore prevent engaging in risky behavior for sustaining themselves.

In addition, young husband groups address gender equality, inter-spousal respect, shared responsibilities in household chores, family care, alcohol abuse, and increase knowledge in reproductive health, HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections, as well as offer messages on abstinence and fidelity.

Expected Results:

  • Reach individuals through community outreach to promote HIV/AIDS prevention through abstinence and/or being faithful
  • Train service providers to promote HIV/AIDS prevention through abstinence and/or being faithful, and to help vulnerable girls
  • Create and maintain girls’ and boys’/mens’clubs
  • Provide orphans and vulnerable children (OVC), especially girls, with skills trainings and education and HIV services
  • Promote voluntary premarital counseling and testing