Yes, we are. Escalating HIV/AIDS infection rates in Eastern Europe and Central Asia are comparable to sub-Saharan Africa. Approximately one million people are currently living with HIV/AIDS in the region, more than double the 420,000 at the end of 1999.

Given the high levels of other sexually transmitted infections, and the high rates of injecting drug use among young people and sex-workers, the epidemic looks set to grow considerably. Mass unemployment and economic insecurity beset much of the region. The rigid social control of the past has eroded yet new common norms and values are not in place. Large numbers of young people are dropping out of school with no jobs to go to. Public health and other services have deteriorated badly in some countries. The vast majority of reported HIV infections are among young people. A growing number of Romanian adolescent girls (15-19), for example, are becoming sexually active before marriage. In the psychological and socio-economic aftermath of the Balkans conflict, young people are now more vulnerable to HIV/AIDS than ever, especially in the Russian Federation, which is at the forefront of this region’s epidemic.

In the Eastern Europe and Central Asian regions we focus on raising awareness among the general public, including school students about the transmission of HIV and thus the prevention of HIV. World Vision works with high-risk groups, including sex workers to prevent the spread of the virus. We also seek to educate communities in order to reduce stigmatisation, which alienates those living with the virus and deters individuals from voluntary testing.

Click here to find out how World Vision is responding in Uzbekistan.

First of all we always address and assess the social contexts in which we work. We ask, “what leads to high risk-behaviour and what are the underlying factors”? An agency like World Vision can never address the issue with a stand-alone prevention-or awareness-raising project. We do our utmost to develop integrated approaches to address the issues. Part of this includes the ABC-approach (Abstinence, Be faithful, Condom use), which has proven successful in African countries like Uganda where prevalence rates among pregnant women dropped from 20.6% in 1991 to 7.9% by 2000 (UNAIDS).

In some cases we do. The provision of clean syringes is part of a broader strategy called ‘Harm Reduction’. It focuses on introducing immediate precautions and safety measures with a view to eventual behaviour change. For this reason, in certain projects we distribute condoms and syringes to Injecting Drug Users (IDUs), homosexuals or men who have sex with men (MSMs) and Commercial Sex Workers (CSWs). Drug Demand Reduction also focuses on peer-to-peer education and on raising public awareness regarding HIV/AIDS issues over a longer period.

As a Christian organisation, we believe that God created all people and loves and values each human life immeasurably and instructs us to do all we can to preserve and enhance life. Therefore in high-risk situations we encourage safe practice first through condom and clean syringe use as a means to preserve and protect life and reduce the transmission of the HIV virus. At the same time we promote long-term behaviour change through counselling and education.