SUMMARY:

Abstinence and be faithful (AB) activities will target students at different levels of the education system.

Activities will support the Department of Education (DOE), in the prevention of HIV in schools, colleges and

universities. The focus of this activity will be on training, care and support for students, and promote positive

healthy behavior. Primary areas of emphasis are training students as peer educators to develop skills to

practice healthy behaviors, training to reduce gender based violence, and skills training to develop the

capacity of students and teachers. Abstinence and be faithful (AB) activities will be integrated with other

prevention activities in support of the DOE. The target populations are students aged 14-19 in schools;

college students aged 18-25; university students aged 18-25; and teachers aged 20 plus enrolled for

training at university.

BACKGROUND:

DOE's Health Promotion Directorate develops policies and provides inputs to legislative frameworks to

address health and HIV and AIDS issues across the education system, in collaboration with other

government departments. The nine provincial education departments are responsible for implementing

programs in schools and colleges. Life skills programs offering age-appropriate AB messages are part of

the school curriculum. The PEPFAR-funded peer education program complements these efforts. DOE is

harmonizing the PEPFAR-supported peer education program with life skills activities to provide training on

HIV prevention, gender based violence, sexual harassment and to fight abuse. Current DOE PEPFAR-

supported activities are in KwaZulu-Natal, Free State, Mpumalanga and North West schools.

Colleges offer vocational education and training programs to improve skills. The DOE revamped college

courses to ensure that they respond to the country skills' needs, and are accessible to students in all areas.

PEPFAR funds will support AB and other prevention activities while economic growth funds will support

wraparound workforce training in health and science related fields.

Universities have identified HIV and AIDS as a key challenge and they are supporting targeted peer

education programs focusing on AB prevention messages. With respect to HIV, universities are involved in

research, teacher training, support to feeder schools and integration of HIV into the curricula. PEPFAR and

education funds will support wraparound activities at the Universities of Zululand and the Western Cape to

strengthen AB programs started through previous USAID support.

ACTIVITY 1: Expansion of Peer Education Program:

This PEPFAR activity will expand the current AB program to an additional 250 schools in the four focus

provinces of KwaZulu-Natal, Free State, Mpumalanga and North West. Funds will strengthen the focus in

new schools in target districts, and develop training programs to address HIV prevention. Activities will

encourage self-worth, the importance of HIV counseling and testing, reduction of stigma and discrimination,

responsible sexual behavior, and knowledge about HIV prevention. Programs will target 36,000 students in

the four districts. Complementary education resources will provide technical assistance to the DOE to

support program management and build host country capacity. Implementation will be through a local NGO.

ACTIVITY 2: Support at the University of Western Cape (UWC):

Support to UWC will extend programs to the Western Cape province and target first year and post graduate

students, trainee teachers and students in feeder high schools. Activities will focus on AB messages and

will be integrated with more comprehensive prevention messaging. Activities will address gender by

targeting male students and teachers and challenging traditional male norms and behaviors that contribute

to the continued spread of the HIV epidemic. Interventions for first year students will encourage attitude and

behavior change as they enter university. Fifty peer educators will encourage 700 first year students to

participate in HIV and AIDS prevention programs as part of their work study programs. Peer educators

receive a stipend, and gain facilitation and training skills. Training will be on AB messages and activities will

be organized through student leadership structures, academic, sporting, and house committees at

residences.

UWC will also work with 1000 high school students from feeder schools located in the Cape Flats

communities which are affected by high levels of gang violence, drug, substance and alcohol abuse.

Trained UWC peer educators will work with high school students to address sexuality issues, and HIV

prevention. Peer educators will provide training to high school students through motivational talks and small

focus group discussions.

Other activities to be supported with education resources will target 100 teachers in the same feeder

schools through teacher training programs to build capacity in HIV education. The UWC HIV and AIDS unit

will adapt teacher training modules used in Southern Africa for accreditation as UWC short-term courses.

Teachers will be trained in life skills courses, enabling them to teach AB programs in schools to address

HIV prevention, sexuality, gender, and abuse issues.

ACTIVITY 3: Support at the University of Zululand (UniZul):

UniZul operates multiple programs to fight HIV and AIDS. Support will focus on AB activities and will be

integrated with other prevention activities targeting students. Activities will strengthen student peer

education programs and address gender-based violence (GBV), particularly related to rape by empowering

young girls with negotiation skills to delay sexual activities. Activities will promote awareness of women's

legal rights and provide guidance on how to access GBV and legal services. UniZul will collaborate with

DramAIDE to stage communication campaigns through drama, art, and poetry, and encourage strategies to

abstain from sex. UniZul will hold quarterly communication campaigns and encourage active participation

from students and staff. Assistance to local schools will strengthen life skills programs. PEPFAR AB

activities will target 2,500 new students, some whom have not yet initiated sexual activity and many of

whom do not yet have current partner on campus.

ACTIVITY 4: Support at Vocational Training Colleges:

Activity Narrative: Support for college students will target youth over age 18 with AB activities. Training will emphasize

strategies to abstain from sexual activities, delay sex until later in life and teach measures to change

behavior targeting 1000 students. AB programs will be integrated with more comprehensive prevention

messages. Funds will be used to train students in skills they may need to abstain and to encourage

delaying sex until marriage. Young people will also be encouraged to adopt social and community norms

that support delaying sex until later in life and skills to avoid cross-generational sex, transactional sex, rape

and other gender-based violence.

The results of these activities will contribute to the PEPFAR 2-7-10 goal of seven million infections

prevented and will directly support the USG/SA strategy in AB by improving A/B preventive behaviors

among youth.

SUMMARY:

Activities to provide other prevention strategies will be carried out by two local universities and two

vocational colleges and will be integrated with the abstinence and be faithful (AB) activities to support the

Department of Education (DOE). Activities will be focused at the Universities of the Western Cape (UWC)

and University of Zululand (UniZul). FY 2008 PEPFAR funds will support existing programs to provide

training in other prevention to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and HIV and

AIDS. Activities will target university students and will promote healthy behavior. Primary areas of emphasis

will be gender, participation, and training students as peer educators to develop skills to practice healthy

behaviors. The program will target students aged 15-35, both males and females.

BACKGROUND:

UWC and UniZul have identified HIV and AIDS as a key challenge on their campuses and surrounding

areas. The institutions have identified qualified senior university personnel to manage and direct HIV and

AIDS policies and programs. UWC has 15,000 students and the majority of the students and staff are black

South Africans. Women comprise 57 percent of the student body. UWC is located in the Cape Flats area,

where high incidences of drugs, alcohol and gang violence have been reported. UWC's HIV and AIDS

program was established in 2001 and it includes a focus on peer education, counseling and testing (CT),

integration into the curriculum, and outreach to local communities where youth are at risk. UniZul is situated

in northern rural KZN close to the major industrial and growth center of Richards Bay. This area is growing

phenomenally due to the amalgamation of adjacent peri-urban, low cost housing, rural and informal housing

areas. UniZul student enrollment is 8,000. Students are mainly from historically disadvantaged communities

and are aged from 18 to 35 years. UniZul operates multiple programs on campus to fight HIV and AIDS,

conducts peer education prevention programs, provides CT, and offers ARV treatment. The university offers

outreach peer education programs to local high school students and interacts with local communities and

hospitals. Vocational colleges will offer other prevention programs integrated with activities encouraging

students to be faithful to their partners. The DOE recently revamped the colleges to offer courses that

respond to emerging skills needs. Colleges will train students to qualify in priority skill areas and engage in

the economy as productive artisans to strengthen the workforce. Some of the colleges have embarked on

their own HIV and AIDS programs, offering prevention services to students and training students to be

health care workers.

ACTIVITY 1: Other Prevention at UWC

FY 2008 PEPFAR funds will support other prevention programs at UWC targeting all students on campus,

particularly first year students. Activities will address gender issues by directly targeting male norms and

behaviors and challenging the way in which practices based on traditional masculine identity encourage the

continued spread of HIV. Training will focus on partner communication skills. USG resources will increase

the involvement of people living with HIV (PLHIV) by supporting two health promoters. Health promoters will

provide individual counseling, initiate and run support groups, offer advice on nutritional support, and

treatment of opportunistic infections, staging of the disease and information on healthy living. Training in risk

reduction communication skills aimed at first year students will encourage attitude and behavior change.

Fifty peer educators will encourage 1,000 first year students to participate in HIV and AIDS prevention

programs as part of their work study programs. Students will receive a stipend, and will be mentored to

become peer educators during their second and third year of study at UWC, gaining facilitation and training

skills. Training will be on safe sexual practices including proper and consistent use of condoms and issues

on cross-generational and transactional sex. UWC has a fully equipped Student Health Services facility on

campus managed by qualified personnel. It offers free CT to students, and those students who test positive

for HIV are referred for further consultation and treatment at the local hospital. UWC has 80 condom

dispensing machines on campus and extra machines at all student residences, and condoms are offered

free of charge from the Department of Health.

ACTIVITY 2: Other Prevention at UniZul

Programs at UniZul include peer education, treatment and CT. UniZul has a partnership with the local

hospital where students who test positive for HIV are referred for further consultation and treatment. The

university has an established CT site within the campus clinic, operated by qualified personnel although

under resourced to meet the student needs. Education funds will support a counselor to address gender-

based violence related to rape on campus and negotiation skills to empower young girls to delay sexual

activities and promote correct and consistent use of condoms. According to the UniZul, 90% of diseases

treated at the campus clinic are STIs, and focus will be on support to the campus clinic to develop and offer

programs to manage STIs. (However, USG funds will not finance treatment of STIs). PEPFAR funds will

train 50 peer educators to reach out to 3,000 additional students who are already engaging in sexual

activity. Training will be on the use of condoms and discourage students from engaging in risky sexual

behavior, cross generational sex and having multiple sexual partners. UniZul will collaborate with DramAidE

to stage communication campaigns through drama, art, and poetry, and develop a coordinated media plan

to increase risk perception relating to multiple and concurrent partners. Activities will target students through

religious, cultural and traditional societies. The USG will mobilize additional support from other PEPFAR-

financed activities to install reliable condo-cans in residences. Although female condoms are available at

the campus clinic, their use has not been widely demonstrated.

ACTIVITY 3: Other Prevention at Vocational Colleges

Focus will be on training 50 peer educators aged from 15 plus to reach out to 1,000 additional students to

encourage consistent use of condoms to prevent HIV and STI infection. Students will be educated on safe

sex measures which include correct and consistent condom use, cross-generation and transactional sex

male norms and behaviors and gender related issues aimed at reducing violence and coercion.

Training will also address the prevention of risky behavior among students due to drug and alcohol abuse.

The results of this activity will contribute to the PEPFAR 2-7-10 goal of 7 million infections prevented and

will directly support the USG/SA strategy in the area of preventive behaviors among youth.

SUMMARY:

Support for orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) and training for their caregivers in targeted schools will

be carried out by a local NGO to support the Department of Education (DOE), to improve the lives of the

OVC. Activities will provide services to OVC in schools and will train caregivers to mentor and support OVC.

Primary areas of emphasis will be gender, human capacity development, psychosocial support, education

and training to support OVC. The program will support the DOE strategy to use schools as full service

centers for learning, teaching, prevention care and support. The target population will be OVC and children

ages 5 - 17 in Grades 0 - 12, and caregivers servicing the focus schools.

BACKGROUND:

The DOE is committed to increasing access to quality education for all students including students with

special needs. Policies are in place to address student retention rates at schools through the expansion of

the feeding scheme program which provides access to nutritious food. DOE is focusing at improving access

for children in rural areas and exemption and elimination of school fees for children whose parents cannot

afford the cost of education. The no fee paying schools offer access to five million children. The DOE's

inclusive education polices are aimed at creating an education environment where there is no

discrimination. The DOE uses a district-based approach to support a cluster of schools with special needs.

Some of these schools have been earmarked as full service schools where therapy, counseling,

assessment, treatment, care and support will be provided to students who require these services.

Many children in rural areas do not have access to any of the services discussed above. Girls still suffer

from various forms of discrimination. Children have to travel long unsafe distances to school and in some

instances they experience abuse and rape along the way. Other children are abused in their homes,

maltreated their peers, and live without adequate adult support and supervision. In some cases children are

absent from school due to ill health or psychosocial factors. Children are marginalized and stigmatized due

to their disability, ill-health or when parents are terminally ill or have died of AIDS. In rural areas children

with disabilities do not have easy access to schools due to lack of transport. They are sometimes hidden by

families or mainstreamed without recognition of their disabilities.

ACTIVITY 1: Caregiver Training

This program will provide training for caregivers to support children and teachers to address disability and

vulnerability issues. The education system is not equipped with qualified caregivers, social workers,

psychologist, and therapists to assess, and provide support to children with disabilities, children traumatized

due to death of a parent, or children infected with AIDS. Teachers do not have adequate skills and the

capacity to serve as counselors and caregivers. Human and physical resources are limited to urban areas

and economically affluent schools. While the DOE has set aside finances to support children with

disabilities, this plan has not yet started to yield the desired results due to lack of capacity. Support will

include training for 30 caregivers from school governing body members to increase capacity to offer quality

education to OVC and disabled children. Support will increase measures to protect OVC from violence,

exploitation, discrimination, abuse and obviate any secondary trauma that may result from their orphanhood

and/or vulnerability. Training for caregivers will impart skills to mitigate the impact of HIV and AIDS, address

disabilities and fight discrimination. Caregivers will receive training to identify OVC, access for referrals for

the identified children to appropriate service providers, establishment and support of child care forums and

monitoring and evaluation systems to ensure that there is accurate data to respond to emerging problems.

The skills acquired through the training will also assist members of the local community especially women to

access income.

Other education funds will be leveraged to provide a comprehensive integrated wraparound OVC program.

Support will include conducting a baseline study in target schools to determine the specific needs of the

students. The targeted schools will receive support for abstinence and be faithful activities.

ACTIVITY 2: OVC with Disabilities

PEPFAR funds will assist 2000 OVC to fight the impact of HIV and AIDS and address disabilities. USG

funds will be used to strengthen mentoring training programs for OVC and more vulnerable disabled

children and increase access to social services, health, nutrition, and education. Activities will support

prevention against HIV and AIDS, equip children with skills to counter abuse, teach children about gender-

based violence prevention, offer OVC career guidance opportunities, tertiary education and training

programs, child protection services and legal aid. Training and workshops will address psychosocial issues

for OVC in schools, integrate HIV and AIDS and gender into the curriculum, addressing sexual harassment,

sexual abuse and unwanted pregnancies to reduce abuse and cohesion.

Support will be linked to the schools that are currently receiving peer education assistance and special

schools identified by DOE as full service schools. This link is aimed at consolidating USG education support

to ensure comprehensive programming in the area.

The OVC program will support children in a cluster of 200 rural KZN schools. The program will focus at the

Kokstad, Mzimkulu schools in the Sisonke District with high poverty levels and HIV prevalence rates. OVC

include children with mental, physical and learning disabilities, and children orphaned by AIDS. The support

to OVC is in line with the DOE's objectives on inclusive education, and uses schools as supportive centers

of learning.

In KZN the provincial education department is working with other donors and local NGOs to strengthen

school structures to provide care and support for children and teachers. This program will be implemented

in collaboration with other ongoing DOE activities. Other partnerships will include establishing links with

local health, social, law enforcement and legal aid services. This is to ensure that the activity is integrated

with existing service institutions in the area to sustain the collaboration between education, health, social

services and police. A local service provider will be identified competitively through an Annual Program

Statement to implement this program.

The results of this activity will contribute to the PEPFAR 2-7-10 goal of 10 million HIV-infected and affected

Activity Narrative: individuals including orphans and vulnerable children received care.