in Côte d'Ivoire

PART 1: REACHING VULNERABLE POPULATIONS: THE MILITARY

I am Doctor Yssouf Ouattara and I am the manager for this project. The political crisis in Cote d’Ivoire was a real disaster for this country. A large number of people were displaced, there were many wars, and civil servants fled…these and other factors are still a security threat even after the war, the prevailing culture was torn apart. It was important to target vulnerable groups, especially because they assumed that they were powerful and immune to infection…because there are people who are vulnerable, but keep telling themselves that they are powerful… I am referring especially to the military, who used to say that they did not need condoms- these are the vulnerable groups!

Q. How many people were reached through this project?

In the 2 years that the project was carried out, 253, 810 people were reached, that is a huge number! In fact, 60% of Ivory Coast was covered by this project involving 18,461 peer group activities and 131 mass campaigns. In total, about 119 military barracks were reached by the project…. It must be noted that for all mass sensitization campaigns, it is not only the military but also the population that lives around the barracks which participates.

Q. Could you please describe what you did to ensure that this project succeeded among the soldiers, and tell us about the impact it had on the civilian population?

The project was carried out between April 2004 and December 2005. We trained the military on the causes of sexually transmitted infections, and on ways to avoid infection. We also distributed free condoms. The army chiefs were involved in these activities…It is really because we involved the army chiefs in all activities, that the project succeeded. That had a really positive effect on the project. In the beginning they were a bit unwilling, since they did not know us very well. You see, all foreigners were considered as potential enemies, because the country was in a state of war. All the army had in mind was to occupy more territory, to win battles…and there we were telling them … `Let’s talk about AIDS’ (laughing)… it was strange in the beginning. Again, we were the first NGO to arrive on the ground. It was a really complex situation! The health workers we recruited were really courageous. They explained the projects to the military chiefs to obtain their support. That is not done as easily as it is said, … CARE had first began by making itself known within the region, by carrying out advocacy campaigns left , right and centre, distributing products…therefore we got to be known in the region and that made our work easier. Therefore, in approaching the military chiefs, we explained the project to them and asked for their opinion on the proposals that we made. By doing this, we made them feel involved in the project. They even made some proposals which we adapted. That is what really convinced them. The peer educators in turn used the advice and words of the military chiefs to convince the soldiers.

Q. What lessons did you learn from this project?

This project was carried out during a political crisis. We learned that in emergency situations, the fight against AIDS has to be adapted to address the issues which make the population vulnerable. By targeting the military, we were able to reach the most strategic population…it is a population that makes decisions, and that exercises power. If we involved them in the project, we would reach a very important segment of the population…given that they had purchasing power, weapons, their decision was final…therefore, if they were involved, the rest would be much easier, and that is why we succeeded. Until today, with the second phase of financing that we received, we are continuing to receive positive reports, and requests for our services…

PART 2: PROOF OF BEHAVIOUR CHANGE

Q. Do you believe that this project led to a change in behaviour among the military?

Later on into the project, we noticed a number of facts which signaled a positive change in behaviour: For example, when our vehicles were passing by the barracks, automatically people ask ‘Give us condoms, Give us condoms!’... . Therefore, at this stage they are already asking for condoms…that’s already a very important point... Secondly, we discovered that the soldiers had begun forming different groups to fight against HIV/AIDS in the barracks. Even the group that we work with here (the Armée de Forces Nouvelles), they also created a committee to fight AIDS. All this shows that collectively, their awareness and behaviour is changing, they are much better trained now to fight against AIDS; they can organize themselves to fight it. At the individual level, they ask more and more for condoms for their own use.

Q. This change in behavior within the military, what impact did it have on the general population?

When the general population sees things changing at the military level, it is also encouraged. That is why we targeted the military, to be able to reach the general population… within this population, our main target groups were the youth, between the ages of 15 and 25, who constitute the most affected population in Cote d’Ivoire. We carried out an evaluation on the level of condom use, and noticed a slight improvement compared to the previous levels.