 Good to have you talk to us, and welcome to The PACT interview series: can you tell us about yourself, maybe the ones we do not know yet.
It is nice to be here. Thank you The PACT for inviting me for this interview series. A little about myself— I once wanted to be a professional footballer, I used to play as a right full back. But, I found my passion as a library advocate. I don’t like noise. I guess one of the major reasons why I don’t like going to the market. (Laughs) Why are you passionate about HIV, SRHR? How did the passion spring up? This question brought a flashback to when I was still in my parent’s house. Issues around sexual and reproductive health were not discussed. I lacked knowledge about my sexual and reproductive health. My premier encounter with information and sensitization about sexual and reproductive health began when I was 17 years old in a higher institution among my peers and friends. I soon cultivated the habit of attending health talk programs organized by serving corps members that come around to lecture and educate us on these issues. I can recall that I received my first contraceptives attending one of the sessions at the age of 18. For the first time in my life, I was free to discuss issues that pertain to my sexual health, overcoming anxiety, and the hormones as a young person. This over the years has formed the basis of my knowledge and guide to make informed choices and decisions that pertains to my sexual reproductive health. As a young person myself, my personal story has been a motivation for meaningful youth engagement in SRHR advocacy and programming. Why did you join The PACT? So, I joined The PACT with the sole aim to contribute meaningfully and actively to advance its quest in creating a space for young people and their networks to meet, network and chart a pathway to end AIDS by 2030. Furthermore, I plan to seize the opportunity to strategically position the need to promote and provide equitable access to information and knowledge about sexual and reproductive health to young people. What motivates you to keep pushing and working for the benefit of young people? As a young person myself, I have learnt to understand that growth is essential, and investment in young people is critical for the development of our community. This has identified a more strategic need to drive sustainable development in all ramifications. It is essential for us to facilitate innovative approaches and youth co-leadership— hence part of the major reasons why I keep pushing and working for the benefit of young people. In this context, if we are to end AIDS by 2030, we need to prioritize young people in advocacy and programming—from planning to implementation and Monitoring & Evaluation. You know, ‘Nothing for us without us’ What are your hopes for the future of the youth HIV movement? A couple of weeks ago, I was at the African Youth SDGs summit in Accra Ghana where I had conversations with fellow young people in the global HIV movement. I was happy at the commitment, dedication and clear foresight fellow young people have towards the HIV movement on the African continent. This further affirms my hopes for the future of the youth HIV movement which is to improve programming, capacity development and advocacy that will drive progress towards our committed efforts in ending AIDS by 2030. More so, creating an enabling environment for young people and inclusion of young people and youth led organisations in HIV global response. Most importantly, to promote and provide equitable access to information and knowledge about sexual and reproductive health to young people. As i said earlier, ‘Nothing for us without us’ What would be your message to young people all over the world working to end AIDS by 2030? My message to young people is that we need to continue our relentless efforts in driving progress towards ending AIDS by 2030. We should explore new frontiers of knowledge and strategic partnerships and collaboration that will drive capacity development, advocacy, programming and equitable access to information and knowledge about sexual and reproductive health for young people.  World AIDS Day, commemorated on the 1st of December each year, is an opportunity for people worldwide to untie and reflect on the fight against HIV, and to remember those who have died from an AIDS-related illness. It was founded in 1988, and was the first ever global health day.
This World AIDS Day will be unlike the others in many ways. In particular the COVID-19 pandemic has brought back echoes of the hard-fought battles over nearly 40 years of the AIDS epidemic, and is threatening to further throw off course the international response, at a time where it is clear we have not done enough to meet the self-set targets of 2020. Both the PACT and Youth Coalition for Sexual and Reproductive Rights, as youth-led organisations working on HIV and sexual and reproductive health and rights around the world, are advocating for young people globally who have been disproportionately shouldering the burden of new HIV infections. In order to tackle this and to get the global HIV response back on track, concerted efforts to promote and sustain youth leadership and community level responses are required, both in HIV prevention and service access, as well as in tackling the stigma and discrimiantion faced by young people living with HIV globally. In this edition of the Watchdog, poetry, prose, and art pieces have been curated and published in a piece of work that brings together work from a diverse group of young people who have in some way or another been impacted by HIV. They demonstrate the power and passion that young people have for facing head-on the issues and hunger for justice that is inherent within all of us. This World AIDS Day is also a time to reflect on and remember all those that have lost their lives as a result of this epidemic; and the innate injustice that is many of these deaths could have been prevented had it not been for a lack of willingness by the global north to share its resources in tackling this virus together. This is particularly poignant at a time where vaccines for COVID-19 have been announced; we cannot let this happen again - access must be equitable and not based on ability to pay. This year’s theme is “Global Solidarity, Shared Responsibility”, and the current pandemic has brought to the forefront what those of is involved in the HIV response already knew; we can only combat these public health crises in solidarity with one antoher - this isn’t a competition, if one of us is left behind, all of us are left behind. The campaign to end AIDS is far from over, and we are currently off track to do this by the deadline of 2030. However, as can be seen from the passion and energy emanating from the pieces in this publication there is a tanciety among us young people to get us back on track; we only ask that we be trusted with our own destiny. There can be nothing about us, without us. In solidarity, The PACT Youth Coalition for Sexual and Reproductive Rights You can download the watchdog here the_pact_aids_day.pdf  MTAG stands for Monitoring Technical Advisory Group, an expert body managed by the Strategic Information and Evaluation (SIE) Department on behalf of UNAIDS. The group has core membership of up to 20 members. The membership is upon invitation by UNAIDS, which considers in the selection the representation of key constituencies in AIDS response monitoring, including a balanced representation of stakeholders, substantive areas, geographic regions, and gender.
Itoro Ekanem is representing communities and civil society working on HIV/AIDS, especially the youth. Itoro Ekanem will serve in this group until 2 years. We are happy to see our member become a part of this global group.  From the 19th of October to the 6th of November 2020, the Adolescent Treatment Coalition and the Global Network of Young People Living with HIV present the yearly Intergenerational Summit. Being hosted virtually for the first time, the event will be presented in a different format, spread over 9 days, for 1 to 2 hours each day, with the aim of reaching a wider audience. The summit is free to join and now accessible to youth and youth serving organisations from all around the world.
In 2020, young people still face significant barriers towards optimal, effective adolescent and youth leadership, including limited funding and support for youth-led networks, as well as limited youth participation in decision-making. Supporting youth leadership is crucial to ensuring that all adolescents and young people living with HIV (AYPLHIV) achieve equity in care and improving treatment outcomes. The yearly Intergenerational Summit aims to foster a dialogue among youth leadership and youth-led and youth serving organisations, sharing best practices and providing capacity building to equip young people and youth led organisations to take the lead and accelerate youth objectives in the fight to end AIDS. This year’s summit with a transitional to being hosted virtually will be hosted over 9 days, for the duration of 1 to 2 hours each day, this will allow for a wider and easier participation of youth groups and youth-led or youth serving organizations globally. The event is sponsored by ViiV Healthcare Below is a rundown of the shape that The PACT’s panel took at the summit. Day 2: 21 October 2020 Chaired by Ekanem Itoro Effiong, Advocacy working Group Lead, and Kaushal Ranasinghe, Capacity Building working group Co-lead - Sri Lanka Panelists:
Time Session Title Summary of session Advocacy 101- How to Change HIV Policy for youth? Welcome & Introduction Introduction to the panelists and session objectives
Questions and answers Open for questions and discussions with youth and the audience. Closing remarks and a vote of thanks to our sponsors, hosts, panelists and participants.  Every year on the 11th of October, the world commemorates the International Day of the Girl Child which focuses attention on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfillment of their human rights. This year marks the 12th edition since it was first celebrated in 2012, with the theme, “My Voice, Our Equal Future”. The PACT joins global communities in amplifying the voices of girls all over, to create an equal world and sustainable future for them.
Considering how HIV disproportionately affects adolescent girls globally due to vulnerabilities created by gender norms and taboos about sexuality, there is a need for countries to ensure the health and wellbeing of the girl child. These factors have a huge impact on the ability of adolescent girls to protect their health and prevent HIV, seek health services, and make their own informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health and lives. Globally, in 2019, adolescent girls accounted for all new HIV infections among adolescents, with East and Southern Africa regions standing at 83% and 78% in the West and Central African regions.[1] In sub-Saharan Africa, one out of every five new infections happens among adolescents girls and young women (AGYW) despite just being 10% of the population. In the worst-affected countries, 80% of new HIV infections among adolescents are among girls, who are up to eight times more likely to be living with HIV than adolescent boys.[2] The convergence of multiple sexual and reproductive health issues makes reaching adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) with HIV prevention particularly critical. Gender discrimination and gender-based violence stimulate the HIV epidemic even as many girls are still facing sexual violence. The low status of girls in the society and within the family, along with the tendency of men and boys to wield power, especially over their sexuality, are key factors in the high rates of violence against adolescent girls. Adolescent girls are major targets of gender-based violence, which includes incest, sexual abuse, female genital, intimate partner violence, marital rape, early and forced marriage, mutilation, sexual exploitation and trafficking. Violence or the fear of violence can stop women and girls from negotiating safer sex, accessing HIV and sexual and reproductive health services and disclosing their HIV status to partners, family members and health providers.[3] The COVID-19 pandemic also saw a rise in sexual and gender-based violence among adolescent girls and young women across various countries. This was exacerbated by the imposed lockdowns in many countries, as a measure to curb the spread of the coronavirus Schools can be critical avenues for reaching adolescents girls with relevant information needed to avoid HIV, however, research shows that 132 million girls are out of school globally.[4] There is a direct correlation between girls’ education and HIV risk, as study shows that uneducated girls are twice as likely to acquire HIV as those who have attended school.[5] Unfortunately, many adolescent girls in school do not receive adequate education on HIV, sex and sexuality. Research has shown that comprehensive sexuality education helps decrease number of adolescents engaging in sex at a very young age, as well as unintended adolescents pregnancies. As Deborah Mamman from Nigeria said, “an empowered girl child is a productive child, a health-seeking child, and therefore a girl who can be entrusted with the survival and wellbeing of herself and the society", girls deserve the right to accurate and comprehensive information about their health and rights to enable them make informed decisions. As a consortium of organizations working with adolescents and young people in the global AIDS response and employing meaningful youth participation as a key strategy, The PACT is calling on all governments to ensure equal access to comprehensive healthcare for adolescents girls, reducing age related barriers hindering access to services. Adolescent girls and young women should also be given equal opportunities and slots at decision-making spaces to ensure their voices are heard, and their issues are addressed adequately. Efforts should be made towards ending all forms of violence against women and girls (VAWG) and ensure adolescents girls enjoy the highest form of human rights, as agreed in various international treaties and conventions. [1] "Adolescent HIV prevention - UNICEF DATA." https://data.unicef.org/topic/hivaids/adolescents-young-people/. Accessed 11 Oct. 2020. [2] "Women and girls, HIV and AIDS | Avert - Avert.org." 23 Apr. 2020, https://www.avert.org/professionals/hiv-social-issues/key-affected-populations/women. Accessed 11 Oct. 2020. [3] "Women and HIV — A spotlight on adolescent girls ... - unaids." 8 Mar. 2019, https://www.unaids.org/en/resources/documents/2019/women-and-hiv. Accessed 11 Oct. 2020. [4] "Girls' education | UNICEF." https://www.unicef.org/education/girls-education. Accessed 11 Oct. 2020. [5] "Women and girls, HIV and AIDS | Avert - Avert.org." 23 Apr. 2020, https://www.avert.org/professionals/hiv-social-issues/key-affected-populations/women. Accessed 11 Oct. 2020.  World Mental Health Day and Young Key Populations
This October 10th, communities globally will be commemorating the World Mental Health Day. The PACT stands in solidarity with young people, civil society, the private sector, governments, the United Nations, across different platforms to call for increased awareness on mental health, proactive contributions for the fulfillment of the mental health needs of marginalized populations, and a strengthened commitment by key stakeholders to invest on mental health programming. The World Health Organization, United for Global Mental Health and the World Federation for Mental Health has launched a campaign leading up to World Mental Health Day with the theme “Move for mental health: let’s invest”. The campaign aims to provide opportunities for various communities, organizations, and agencies to develop programmes that cater to the wellbeing and mental health needs of their constituents. For young people, the relevant key messages of this campaign include:
As a consortium of organizations working with young key populations and advocacies for sexual and reproductive health and rights, the PACT is also committed to ensure that mental health is seen as an integral part of our work and advocacy. The link between HIV and Mental Health is apparent. Data has shown that people living with HIV have a higher risk of mental health conditions. People living with HIV should also take care of both their physical and mental health. People living with HIV face intersectional stigma and discrimination as they are often also discriminated for their age, sexuality, gender, race, social class, among other things. This exclusion from society results in feelings of anxiety and stress that may affect the lives of young key populations. One group that often faces these discriminatory acts are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex (LGBTQI) individuals. These discriminatory acts lead to negative experiences that hamper or prevent their access to peer support groups, mental health professions, and sexual health services. Oftentimes, some spaces are not accommodating or affirming of LGBTQI experiences and increase feelings of anxiety and stress for these groups. These can further lead to utter neglect of nutrition and physical fitness, dropping out of education or unsatisfactory academic performance, and affecting their social relationships with peers. LGBTQI youth, Mental Health, and COVID-19 In June 2020, Youth Voices Count, a regional network for young LGBTQI persons in Asia-Pacific, launched the “#CopingWithCOVID: The Well-Being of LGBTIQ Adolescents and Youth during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Asia and the Pacific”. This report hopes to spotlight the issues and challenges faced by LGBTQI adolescents and youth in Asia-Pacific which were exacerbated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The study utilized a framework wherein the individual well being of LGBTQI was viewed under four interrelated dimensions. The four areas of well-being covered in the report are (a) mental health, (b) sexual health, (c) civil and political life, and (d) social and economic status. Zooming in on the mental health dimension the following were the key points:
In the survey conducted prior to the study, more than 70% of the respondents experience higher vulnerability towards family members, such as concerns about being disclosed to other members of household, stigma and discrimination, and hostility or disagreement with family due to sexual orientation or gender identity. Additionally, the various levels of state-sanctioned quarantine measures and community lockdowns has limited the mobility of LGBTIQ clients to access mental health services, medication, and other forms of counseling, guidance, and support. Lastly, many young people have relied on social media for information on both COVID-19 and mental health. This is equally important in the conversation of sexual health and HIV/AIDS as COVID-19 also affected the access to sexual health services, including access to ARV and other medication, counseling and testing, and other services. Coupled with the stigma and discrimination faced by young key populations, like men who have sex with men (MSM), transgender persons, sex workers, and people who use drugs, the inaccessbility to services could be detrimental to the wellbeing of these populations. This World Mental Health Day, we should therefore acknowledge that various key population communities have unique mental health needs. It is also the role of civil society to provide sensitized and supportive mental health care and support for key populations. Additional effort should also be dedicated to understanding the issues and challenges faced by communities on their wellbeing and mental health that could prevent or slow down our global HIV targets from being met. 
Good to have you talk to us, and welcome to The PACT interview series: can you tell us about yourself, maybe the ones we do not know yet. Hey, it’s wonderful to talk with the PACT team! I like to introduce myself as an upcoming YKP leader and human rights activist in Sri Lanka and I am also the former YKP focal point of the Key Affected Population Committee, affiliated to the Sri Lanka CCM and Focal point of Youth Lead in Sri Lanka. I am currently working as a Project officer of an RPK and working on achieving equality in rural areas and promote Human Rights. I raise my voice against GBV and SGB of women and marginalized communities. I am also engaged in several advocacy initiatives including strengthening community engagement at the CCM, Gender Subcommittee of Sri Lankan parliament, and decision-making platforms related to the HIV response of the country and giving CSE for adolescents, initiatives related to the ICPD program of action in Sri Lanka with UNFPA, advocacy on PrEP roll-out in Sri Lanka, and LGBT rights advocacy with young people. I am also engaged in advocacy using visual media. I have developed several videos on LGBT Rights, IDAHOT, HIV, and other SRHR issues. As a journalist and media personality, I use my social media platforms, especially Facebook pages dedicated to issues of HIV, young people, and SRHR. I am also the mobilizer of the "Youth For Tomorrow" group in Sri Lanka which is a mobilization platform for young activists. Why are you passionate about HIV, SRHR? How did the passion spring up? In Sri Lanka, HIV and SRHR issues are taboos. No one talks about those things openly! Therefore, young people face a lot of difficulties including myself. Then I decided to come out and make platforms to talk and share knowledge, experience, and ideas. Especially as a journalist, I face a lot of challenges and I became a topic when sharing my open ideas about HIV and SRHR issues. But I got those challenges and bullying as milestones of my activist journey. Therefore I work to get those challenges. Why did you join The PACT? By being part of The PACT, I want to further build my capacity as a young KP leader. I want to gain knowledge especially on policy level engagement related to SRHR issues of young people and YKP and strategies to effective advocacy with policymakers and decision-makers. I also want to gain knowledge and expertise on mobilizing young people and sustaining a successful mobilization initiative to ensure that young people from key populations continue to engage meaningfully throughout. Another way I believe The PACT will help me share knowledge among young people everywhere in this world and develop skills and change attitude to raise voice for human rights and against stigma, discrimination. What motivates you to keep pushing and working for the benefit of young people? I always like to see empowered people, therefore I changeG my career and came to rural areas in Sri Lanka also. I believe we must help people who live in the beyond of benefit line. Some people get every benefit and they live without any suffering. But what about others? This power line is so wrong and unfair. Therefore we need to fight and change this system. As an example, we can see high-class LGBT people enjoy them their rights! but it's hard to get rights to those who live in poverty. That's same for every community. Therefore my team and I are trying to stand up for marginalized youth and it's my motive. What are your hopes for the future of the youth HIV movement? We need to alliance with government and civil society for our goal. Sometimes this movement is backward, because disparity between government and civil organizations. Civil organizations know real situation of the community and government have resources. If we take one platform to both parties, that will be more effective. And I believe we need to give more opportunities for youth to decision making, then we can get more engagement from them. What would be your message to young people all over the world working to end AIDS by 2030? We are waiting for you! Here, we have lots of space for leaders! If you can lead this movement and take more responsibilities, we can end AIDS by 2030. And don't make stigma and discrimination! If you see any stigma or discrimination, please fight, please ask help..  Please click on the download link below to read the press statement: 
 To ensure young people are better organized, engaged and equipped to effectively and efficiently engage in the AIDS response, The PACT – the global coalition of youth-led and youth-serving organizations and networking in the AIDS response- is launching podcast to help document the experiences of youth leaders, generate new knowledge and share the experiences of young people in the AIDS response particularly young key populations. The PACT Podcast is a virtual storytelling and documentation platform for young people working in the AIDS response and their supporters including experts to share their perspectives, opinions and experiences of working in the AIDS response through interviews, storytelling, readings etc. The podcast majorly aims to document the experiences, opinions and aspirations of young people in the AIDS response while looking at these objectives:
The links to each podcast shall be shared across platforms for easy access.  The PACT is excited to be welcoming the new Co-leads and Leads of particular working groups of The PACT.
Here is a list of the new appointments:
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