FAMILIES ARE THE FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE FOR CHILDREN
When designing and delivering support intervention for children infected an /affected by HIV/AIDS, its critical to create strong positive bond between children ,families and communities as it is ,this every day “life space of child that determines their well being and their vulnerability .Families are the first line of defense for children .typically it is the family that provides necessities, love, and nurturing and when families can no longer cope or meet these need ,the community becomes the children’s safety net with the magnitude of the HIV/AIDS pandemic and scare resources community based care of infected and or/affected children that involves these critical sector of a child support net work is essential if programs are to be both sustainable and comprehensive
Diagram shows ways to socialize with children from grassroots
More than 15 million children under the age of 18, most of them in sub-Sahara Africa have lost one or both parents to AIDS. Million of children are highly vulnerable because their parents are suffering from AIDS Or become their families are heavily affected by the pandemic. The challenge is to Fid ways to help communities care .Families .children’s for the unprecedented number of children and families rendered vulnerable by HIV/AIDS
Community care who are already taking responsibility for assisting OVC and other vulnerable .Community member,are interested in doing so, these community members often came from one or more community based organization by providing training and other technical assistance to enhance capacities specific to caring for OVC such as child monitoring and protection, psychosocial support and HIV prevention facilitating access to education, health care, and malnutrition,
SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR AMONG YOUTH
In Tanzania sexual behavior to youth are different, Although it is community known that most HIV/infection , in Tanzania are acquired through sexual contact and having multiple sexual partners increases the risk of getting HIV, prevalence of multiple partnership among youth is still high more males especially those of 20-24 than females reported sex with more than one partner in the past 12 month,
Sexual negotiation skills ,It is generally known that in Tanzania ,like in many other African societies, the right of women within a sexual relationship are low, some girls/women have been forced into having sex. while exchanging sex for money or gift was also common in the study area, The fact that female are more likely to received money or gift for sex might reduce their negotiating power in sexual relations which, negotiating power in sexual relations which can also be translated to the women’s, inability to negotiated condom use for safe sex. though a fairly large percentage of female reported that it is possible for a women to negotiate condom use with a man .who is not her husband for only a small percentage of female had actually succeeded in negotiating condom use,
The impact of HIV/AIDS to children .At the end of 2001 there were over 13.4 million children orphaned by HIV/AIDS in the world with “orphan” defined as a child under the age of 15 who has lost one or both parents in this case due to HIV/AIDS over 11 million of these were in Africa .The global figure are estimated to grow to 24 million by 2010(UNAID,UNICEF,USAID2002)
Children orphaned by AIDS are vulnerable in almost all aspect of their lives(Haworth and kalumba 1991,foster et all 1995,foster et all 1997) invariably, witness the prolonged illness and death of one or more families member and suffer mental distress as a result. some of the many challenges faced by orphans are loss of family depression increased malnutrition ,lack of in heritance through(property grabbing) homeless early marriage ,exposure to abuse and increase risk of HIV/AIDS(hunter and Williamson 1997)
Main problems facing orphan were inadequate shelter inability to pay for school fees and supplies lack of bedding, clothing and medical care and burden of having to care for younger sibling (shuey at al 1996 Research in Tanzania ) found higher rates of malnutrition in orphans compared to non-orphans
HIV-positive parents experience psychosocial distress because of uncertainty about their children’s future ,children also experience psychosocial distress about their future, which may be manifested by depression or behavioral problems at school (hunter and Williamson 1997)
The well-being of all children affected by AIDS depend in great part on the capacity of the community to support families and raised then “ the first and most important responses to the problems caused by HIV/AIDS come from the affected children .Families and communities themselves. (The effort of government Ngos and donors are significant largely to the extent that they help children, families and communities cope more easily with these problems)
Most African culture are characterized by strong family and social support system in times of need within this system children who lose their parents are typically taken in by a relative such as an Uncle or Aunt as has been the pattern in East Africa. However as the prevalence of HIV increases and the number of orphans grows this system is being challenged. Although most experts do not believe that the African family structure has ‘collapsed” .Under the weight of AIDS thee is no doubt that care giver are increasingly burdened some adults refused to take in orphans ,while other continue to take them in despite their own poverty, orphans find themselves belonging to a house hold headed by elderly grandparent with no source of income, or by an older sibling under the age of 18
Children whose living with HIV/AIDS tell are story about stigma
