ACHAP, NACA Re-launch Wise Up Campaign

Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Monday August 14, 2017 15:44

The Wise Up campaign is aimed at inspiring behaviour change by creating platforms for dialogues on strategies to reduce HIV risk among adolescents and youths in Botswana.

When addressing a press briefing in Gaborone recently, ACHAP head of new projects, Blessed Monyatsi said the Wise Up Campaign fell under the adolescent and youth prevention module under the comprehensive sexuality education component.

He added that other components of that module included HIV testing, counseling and safe male circumcision.

“The campaign is youth-focused integrated media channel that includes traditional and social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and radio. The programme targets adolescents and youths aged 10 to 29 years. It seeks to engage this group through various communication channels to improve knowledge of HIV and retention,” he said.

Monyatsi further explained that the sobering figures of HIV among that group propel them to intensify their efforts to reach the youth and prevent further infections. He added that strategies that invest in young people and in changing sexual behaviours would prove effective in ending HIV and AIDS.

He noted that Wise Up provides a platform for dialogue on strategies for HIV prevention among that critical group.

“It is premised on the fact that health choices and decisions we make today have significant implications for the future. The future is our youth and the youth is the future,” he said.

The objectives of the campaign are to increase the proportion from 40 to 60%, for the 10 to 14-year-olds with comprehensive knowledge of HIV, increase the proportion from 42 to 60% for 15 to 24-year-olds with comprehensive knowledge of HIV and increase the proportion from 17 to 60% of 15 to 29-year-olds who consistently use a condom with a regular partner.

The campaign is hinged on the premise that informing young people about the current status of HIV epidemic in Botswana will allow them to take ownership of their future, says Monyatsi. He added that availing young people platforms to engage in the HIV discourse allows them to take ownership of their future.

There will also be an SMS platform in which the youth between 10 to 29 year-old will be registered to receive tailor made age appropriate messages addressing HIV prevention and treatment, sex and sexuality issues.

The campaign is held in 10 health districts namely; Francistown, Tutume, Boteti, Okavango, Phikwe, Maun, Palapye, Serowe, Kgalagadi North and Letlhakeng.

Those villages were chosen looking at the most affected areas that lacked such youth oriented HIV and AIDS campaigns.

The campaign is facilitated through peer education mentor who support peer educators to drive the engagement and conversations in all the 10 Global Fund grant focus districts and beyond.

For his part, a representative from NACA Victor Thanke said Botswana was one of the countries hardest hit by HIV in the world.

He explained that young people in the country constitute almost half of the country’s population with 44%. He added that adolescents aged 10 to 19 years make close to one quarter (23.4%) of the population.

“By 2013 the national HIV prevalence was estimated at 18.5%.

HIV prevalence is estimated at five percent among young people of 10 to 14 and 15 to 19 years of age. Prevalence rate doubles among the age groups 20 to 24 and 25 to 29, and girls are twice infected as compared to boys. In 2008, only 43% of young people aged 15 to 24 years had comprehensive knowledge,” he said.

He pointed out that although not sufficient to change behaviour, lack of knowledge was therefore one of major factors making young people vulnerable to HIV infection.

He said percentage of young Batswana aged 15 to 24 years of age with comprehensive HIV prevention knowledge was recorded as 28.1% in 2004, 43.1% in 2008 and 47.9% in 2013.