22 January, 2009
In this issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS newsletter, we report on the changes in the ICEM HIV/AIDS Project in 2009, on the sub-regional HIV/AIDS workshop in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, and on the latest report from PEPFAR.
The ICEM Calls on its Affiliates to Contribute to this e-bulletin
ICEM affiliates are already engaged in a wide range of HIV/AIDS activities. To spread the information on new agreements, awareness, and prevention campaigns, and educational activities, affiliates and project coordinators are invited to send news and information to [email protected]. Any feedback on the format and contents of the e-bulletin is also welcome.
Editor: Hans J Schwass, ICEM HIV/AIDS Consultant
The ICEM HIV/AIDS Project in 2009
While the ICEM HIV/AIDS Project will continue in 2009, the management of the project will undergo some changes. The assignment of the Global Coordinator ended on 31 December 2008. During the transition year 2009, he will work as a part-time consultant. The management of regional and national activities in Africa has been fully transferred to the project office in Johannesburg.
The project team and national coordinators have worked hard to achieve concrete results in HIV/AIDS interventions at the workplace over the past four years. We have seen successes and we have had some disappointments. We must build on our achievements. Some countries and ICEM affiliates have emerged as champions and must lead those who have yet to live up to their commitments.
In some countries, steps forward have been made towards sustainability because the leadership sees HIV/AIDS as a union issue and because working relations have been established with organisations which can give technical and material assistance.
While it is important to achieve universal access, the fight against the pandemic cannot be won by putting more people on treatment alone. When there are five new HIV infections for every two people put on treatment, the importance of prevention is obvious. We have used the workplace as an entry point for prevention measures, and for our advocacy for voluntary counselling and testing. The ICEM has focused its efforts on the workers, their families, and the larger community.
We will continue to do so in 2009 with national programmes in sub-Saharan African countries and sub-regional workshops in Africa, with funding from the LO/TCO and FNV Mondiaal, and new or expanded projects in India with sponsorship from the German pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim. In Tanzania, with the help of the German affiliate IGBCE, in Trinidad and Tobago, with assistance from the Humanity Fund of ICEM’s Canadian affiliate CEP, and in Mongolia with the support from Japanese UI Zensen and TPWU of Taiwan, our project work will be expanded.
ICEM Sub-regional HIV/AIDS Review Workshop in Abidjan
Unionists from Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Mali came together in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, from 15-17 December 2008 for a sub-regional workshop to review progress in their HIV/AIDS work. Working groups dealt with constraints in their HIV/AIDS work and possible solutions; considered new proposals; discussed the role of women and young workers and argued in favour of mainstreaming HIV/AIDS in all union activities; and explored the idea of making HIV/AIDS an organising tool for unions.
Above all, participants discussed future sustainability in view of the expiry of the ICEM HIV/AIDS Project. While funding from employers and national and international organisations, and cooperation with NGOs and faith-based organisations are all important, commitment by union leadership is crucial in the fight against the pandemic. This was demonstrated by the active participation of the General Secretaries of the three ICEM affiliates in Côte d’Ivoire in the workshop. Unions should also develop technical competence in proposal writing and project management.
Presentations on HIV/AIDS workplace policies, the ILO Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS and the world of work, workers’ rights and the companies’ response were made by representatives of government agencies, NGOs and CECI, the business coalition in Côte d’Ivoire to fight HIV/AIDS.
Assessment Missions Completed
As reported in previous e-bulletins, a series of assessment missions was undertaken in all sub-Saharan project countries. These were successfully completed in November and December with missions to Tanzania by the Project Management Assistant, to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) by the Coordinator in Côte d’Ivoire, and to Côte d’Ivoire by the Global Coordinator.
These assessment missions have become an important tool in the ICEM’s HIV/AIDS work. The conclusions of all mission reports reveal the strength and weaknesses in the different countries and allow for more focussed interventions in the 2009 programme. This has also been facilitated by the three sub-regional review workshops.
ICEM Affiliates and World AIDS Day
More reports have come in from affiliates on their activities on World AIDS Day, 1 December 2008. SITRAPEQUIA, the union organising petroleum and chemical workers in Costa Rica, organised a day of action with its own flyer and information material from UNAIDS.
In India, World AIDS Day activities were lead by master trainers and peer educators trained under the workplace project of the Indian affiliates and the ICEM, with support from the German pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim. Large rallies were organised in Dhanbad, Korba, and Indore on this occasion in India. Exhibitions on HIV/AIDS with photographs, banners and campaign material were also put up.
Namibia: Assessment of Chamber of Mines Programme
The ICEM HIV/AIDS Project funded an assessment of the Occupational Health Education and Awareness Programme (OHEAP) of the Chamber of Mines in Namibia. OHEAP includes a strong HIV/AIDS component. The report, prepared by the Labour Resource and Research Institute (LaRRI), was finalised in December 2008.
One of the objectives of this assessment was also to foster more cooperation on HIV/AIDS activities between the Chamber of Mines and ICEM-affiliated Mineworkers’ Union of Namibia (MUN), which also contributed funding towards the assessment. The report shows, among other items, that despite good intentions, HIV/AIDS interventions were often not as effective as it could have been with better communication and more involvement of shop stewards and the union in general.
African AIDS Conference
The 15th International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA) was held in Dakar, Senegal, from 3-7 December 2008. The ILO organised sessions with a range of UN, donor, and NGO partners and presented good practices from public and private sector workplaces.
The leader of the ILO delegation, Executive Director of the Social Protection Sector, Assane Diop, emphasised that prevention remains the real tool to respond to the HIV epidemic. “There needs to be more access to prevention and treatment,” he said, adding, “We have many examples of how the world of work provides information and delivers a range of services.”
The ICEM was represented at ICASA by the Coordinator for Côte d’Ivoire, Charlotte Nguessan.
(Source: ILO/AIDS website)
Latest PEPFAR Results
In 2003, former US President Bush launched the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. The latest report to the US Congress states that US$18.8 billion were provided in HIV/AIDS funding. The report states that more than two million people were put on treatment in the 15 focus countries; that care was supported for more than 10 million people worldwide; and that community outreach programmes, prevention of mother-to-child transmission, and condom distribution has prevented millions of new infections.
The US Congress has authorised up to US$48 billion for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria over the next five years. While the PEPFAR Coordinator has been asked to stay on temporarily, it is hoped that the Obama administration will break with the emphasis on abstinence and favour a broader spectrum of HIV prevention strategies.
PEPFAR was conceived as a public/private partnership with buy-ins from the private sector. From the beginning, programmes have tilted towards business, not least because trade unions have yet to assert their role as workplace partners with credible programmes. The report specifically states that “PEPFAR also remains dedicated to expanding workplace programs that provide HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care.”
With a more favourable political environment in Washington, the ball is now in the unions’ court.
(Source: Information from Robert E. Lovelace, Consultant to the Global Union AIDS Programme and website www.pepfar.gov where the report and a fact sheet can be found)
TUC Launches Projects to Combat HIV/AIDS
To coincide with World AIDS Day, the UK’s Trades Union Congress (TUC) launched two new projects in Africa to combat the HIV/AIDS pandemic and the stigma and discrimination associated with it. TUC Aid – the development arm of the UK trade unions – will be assisting the Timber Workers’ Union in Ghana and the national centre, National Organisation of Trade Unions (NOTC), in Uganda.
TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said, “We will help unions in Ghana and Uganda help their members by making the workplace the frontline in the battle against the AIDS pandemic. Workplaces have the infrastructure for training and education campaigns on HIV/AIDS and – where unions are recognised – can help to eliminate the stigma and discrimination associated with the disease.”
(Source: TUC Press Release, 28 November 2008)
Colombia: Most Vulnerable Fall Through Health System Gaps
Although the Colombian government mandates that private health companies provide essential services, including those related to HIV/AIDS treatment, care, and prevention, many have refused to comply. The UNAIDS Country Coordinator said that companies receive federal funding, but are not using it to do interventions. There is no national HIV prevention strategy or budget to target high-risk groups – such as men who have sex with men, commercial sex workers, and displaced people.
According to UNAIDS estimates, about 170,000 people in Colombia are living with HIV/AIDS. The testing rate is very low. Of the 25,000 people who have tested and found in need of treatment, around 18,000 are currently accessing treatment.
(Source: IRIN, 12 January 2009, as reported in Medical News Today, 15 January)
New UNAIDS Executive Director
Michel Sidibé, previously Deputy Executive Director of UNAIDS and an Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations, was appointed Executive Director of UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS.
Accepting his appointment, Mr Sidibé said, “I am indeed honoured to serve UNAIDS. The AIDS epidemic is not over in any part of the world. We have to ensure that there is strong and long term leadership and financial commitment to respond to AIDS that is grounded in evidence and human rights.”
(Source: UNAIDS Press Release, 1 December 2008)
Global Fund Becomes Autonomous Institution
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria announced that effective 1 January 2009 it will become an administratively autonomous international financing institution, separating from the World Health Organization (WHO).
When the Global Fund was established in 2002, it entered into an Administrative Services Agreement (ASA) with the WHO to provide a range of administrative and financial services to the Global Fund. This arrangement enabled the Global Fund to start operations quickly and to fund programmes delivering life-saving services less than a year after it was established in January 2002.
The arrangement with WHO was intended to be temporary, and in November 2007, the Global Fund Board decided that it should be terminated on 31 December 2008. Becoming administratively autonomous allows the Global Fund greater flexibility as an institution. The Global Fund retains a status as an international institution with privileges and immunities similar to UN organisations that are headquartered in Switzerland.
(Source: Global Fund Press Release, 19 December 2008)
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