ECCD and HIV/AIDS

Co-Conveners:  Chloe O’Gara (Save the Children, USA) and Peter Laugharn, (Bernard van Leer Foundation)
Working with Louise Zimanyi (CG Secretariat) and Jodie Fonseca, (Save the Children, USA)

Purpose:  With funds provided by the Bernard van Leer Foundation, and Save the Children, USA as well as in-kind contributions provided by Save the Children, USA and the Consultative Group, the current purpose of this Working Group is to i) raise the profile of the care and support needs of young children affected by HIV/AIDS at the 2006 International AIDS Conference (IAC) (www.aids2006.org) to be held in Toronto, August 13-18, 2006; ii) to begin positioning for increased attention/awareness to the issue of young children and HIV/AIDS for the next IAC in 2008 and iii) to use these opportunities as the launching pad for further work of the CGECCD HIV/AIDS Working Group. Strategies include targeting the public, policymakers, and practitioners with the message that young children ages 0-8 are the most vulnerable but also the most neglected age group among children affected by HIV/AIDS, particularly in terms of their non-clinical care and support needs.

Status:

An initial TOR was developed and a call for members put out to CG Partners.  Additional members are still needed and welcome.

Activities currently underway:

• Updating of the CGECCD Coordinators' Notebook on HIV/AIDS through the production of  three briefs for distribution timed to coincide with the IAC including new data; case studies highlighting the evidence base on ECCD and HIV/AIDS with a focus on the successes, challenges and lessons learned from programs that CG members are implementing; and policy advocacy--making the case for why ECCD interventions are a wise investment, with a focus on cost-effectiveness, and discussing the way forward from here
• Use of briefs to influence the content of events before and at the conference including talking points for child-focused plenary speaker and key note speaker i.e. Stephen Lewis, UN Special Envoy for AIDS in Africa
• Organisation of two ECCD Panels at the 'Envisioning the Future' preconference symposium August 11th and 12th, 2006 (See program:) prior to the IAC
• Working with CCABA--The Coalition for Children Affected by AIDS (www.ccaba.org) of which CG is a member (Louise sits on the CCABA Steering Committee along with BVL etc), UNICEF, The Teresa Group and others  to develop a Children's Networking Zone in the Global Village at the IAC (www.aids2006.org)
  Note: see www.ccaba.org for a regularly updated 'roadmap' of child-related sessions/events at the IAC
• Generating media coverage on young children and HIV/AIDS at the conference

Activities post 2006 IAC:

• Mapping out a step-by-step process for defining the 2008 IAC agenda on young children affected by HIV/AIDS
• Advocating with the 2008 IAC steering committee to include a more specific focus on young children, for example by recommending that the committee have one member from an ECCD background, suggesting concurrent session and plenary themes on children, and recommending abstract track categories and committee members that focus on young children.
• Developing articles on ECCD and HIV/AIDS targeted for submission to journals that are widely read by the HIV/AIDS community, to emphasize the need for a broader approach that encompasses but is not limited to medical interventions. This could include, for example, targeting the journal (AIDS) that is published by the main conference organizer, the International AIDS Society. In developing these articles, we will draw upon the case study material from the three CN briefs to present the evidence base from CG members.
• Continuing to work with the journalists cultivated for the 2006 IAC to publicize the need for a stronger focus on young children with US and international audiences
• Conducting a post-IAC 2006 briefing on ECCD and HIV/AIDS for a strategically-selected audience in Washington, DC through the US OVC Task Force (in collaboration with CG members Christian Children’s Fund and Plan International, who also hold co-chair positions on the OVC Task Force). Advocacy at other international and US fora will also be explored.

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