AIDS Early Adolescent Prevention Project

The programme, which focused on training, information, education and counselling, helped children learn about ways to prevent HIV/AIDS infection. Fifty teachers were trained in HIV/AIDS education. Health promotion activities, such as clubs to encourage healthy practises, outreach programmes, and other group education initiatives, were also developed. Another component of the programme was the design, promotion, and distribution of IEC/BCC (Information, Education and Communication/Behaviour Change Communication) materials.

HIV/AIDS, Children, Education.

This project was designed to respond to the decline in the age at menarche, early sexual debut by adolescents, and high prevalence of HIV/AIDS among adolescents and youth aged 15-24 years. The programme seemed timely in light of two facts: parents were becoming more cooperative in the provision of reproductive health knowledge to their children, and the majority of primary school teachers were not knowledgeable about HIV/AIDS prevention and education activities.

The programme accomplished the following:

• authorities fom Ede north and Egbedore Local Governments Administrations (LGAs), local education boards, and ten primary schools were mobilised to support AIDS prevention education activities;
• 50 teachers were trained in AIDS education;
• 15,000 pupils were provided with information on HIV/AIDS;
• three categories of IEC/BCC materials on HIV/AIDS were produced and distributed;
• 15 outreaches and group educational activities were conducted among students; and
• ten AIDS prevention clubs were established.