AIDSImpact.com:: - Santa Fe, USA 2011

Abstract #11 - Integration problematic of AIDS orphans in reception families: family peer educators contribution to fight against AIDS orphans stigmatization and discrimination in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo
Authors: Presenting Author: Mr Raphael Anzuruni Mbuto - Tous Contre le Sida
Additional Authors:
Aim: Eradication of AIDS orphans stigmatization and discrimination in reception families.
Method / Issue: AIDS is producing orphans since its discovery in Democratic Republic of Congo. Those orphans are often welcomed by paternal or maternal family. Their presence in those families faces stigmatization and discrimination issues. This situation leads to psychological and social problems such as schooling loss. So, we welcomed 100 orphans in our office talking about their difficulties in the reception families during 2009. 55/100 orphans welcomed i.e. 55% were not educated because of their presumed positive serology status. Their school-attendance was considered as a waste of money. Then, we have decided to initiate a project in order to solve that problem.
Results / Comments: This project was in Kinshasa in 2009. We started by training 2 peer educators recruited among the responsibles of orphans reception families, particularly the father or the mother or any important person. The aim was to eradicate AIDS orphans stigmatization and discrimination in reception families thanks to permanent mobilization of all family members by family peer educators. The target has been all the members of AIDS orphans reception families. 80 family responsibles have been identified and trained as peer educators per group of 20. Each trained peer educator was asked to mobilize his relatives. 1500/1600 family members foreseen i.e. 93.7% have been mobilized. 50/55 unschooled orphans i.e. 90.9% have been schooled.
Discussion: Many AIDS orphans are often subject of stigmatization and discrimination in reception families. However, the peer educators permanence in those families and mostly among responsibles has helped to improve the orphans conditions of life in general and their schooling in particular. So, all bad advice or criticism stopped. In order to enable aids orphans to recover their human dignity in reception families, we are recommending to different organizations fighting AIDS to train more family peer educators and encourage them to mobilize their relatives whenever orphans integration issue is set.
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