By Kefiloe Kajane
The National AIDS Commission (NAC) this week launched a Technology-based HIV Prevention Programme for youth meant to reduce the incidence of HIV among the youth.
This is a collaboration between NAC, Limkokwing University of Technology (LUCT) within the SADC region and other players in HIV prevention.
LUCT vice chancellor Advocate Tefo Macheli said it is not a hidden fact that to get a message across to young people, “one needs to adapt to innovative and creative means of communications and information dissemination which the youth can easily relate to,”
He said it was for that reason that LUCT -as a supporting technical partner- was identified by SADC in view of its educational ecosystem that targets youth and prioritises innovation and creativity in delivering education.
He judged that those were the major components that the youth can relate to. He was convinced that the youth are the future generation that requires protection against the HIV infection.
“This youth program, in this format, could not have come at a better moment. The goal of this programme is to contribute to the reduction of new HIV infections among young people aged between 15-24 years in Botswana, Lesotho and Eswatini.
“On behalf of LUCT management and all stakeholders involved, I would like to take this opportunity to thank SADC for giving the university an opportunity to open its doors in their shores to develop the future generation with its innovative and creative education ecosystem,” Macheli said.
NAC’s chief executive officer, Mamello Letsie, said the launch follows a high regional event that took place earlier this month virtually between Lesotho, Botswana and Eswatini.
She said the main concern was a high rate of new infections among young people globally.
She said HIV/AIDS interventions remained one of the global priority areas with the overall goal of decreasing the number of HIV & AIDS infected and affected individuals and families.
“The prevention of HIV infection, is a major focus of the HIV & AIDS responds within the region. The primary objective of the HIV prevention programmes is to accelerate the reduction of new infections in all populations by giving priority to populations with higher vulnerability and those include our young people.
“The three countries have all set targets of reducing new infections among young people by 2023 through their respective strategic programmes. SADC has invested considerable effort into the HIV prevention programmes and the project titled ‘Using technology to enhance HIV prevention interventions for young people in Botswana Eswatini and Lesotho.’
It has been coined in line with the priorities of the major declaration fight against HIV and AIDS in the SADC region.
LUCT’s director ‘s representative Ntlaloe Ntlaloe said there is no need to fight youth from using technology but direct them on how best they can use technology.
He said the programme would encourage the youth to use social media platforms to reduce the incidence of the epidemic.
“It is good for our young people to spend time using cellphones. So we are going to make sure that we use the technology available at our disposal while still receiving information that is good for them. The role of the university is to play innovative, technological and transformed ways to repackage messages and information about HIV and AIDS,” Ntlaloe said.
