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U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission presents Forces Nouvelles representative General Michel Gueu with a map of intervention sites of Operation Haute Protection, the PEPFAR-funded HIV/AIDS prevention and care project for the uniformed services and their partners launched by Population Services International.

PEPFAR delegation tours North, helps launch HIV/AIDS project for uniformed services

Community sensitization on HIV/AIDS and exchanges with local health authorities marked a week-long PEPFAR delegation tour of northern Cote d’Ivoire culminating in the launch of an HIV/AIDS program for the uniformed services and the national celebration of International Woman’s Day in Korhogo.

Hundreds of women and men in the Boundiali, Ferke, and Korhogo areas participated in educational conferences on HIV/AIDS, violence against women, and care for orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) organized by the Ministry of Family and Social Affairs as part of a series of events leading up to International Woman’s Day (March 8). A team from the ministry’s National Program for Orphans and Vulnerable Children, led by Director Dr. Clementine Anderson-Koua, joined the PEPFAR delegation in informational visits to health facilities and PEPFAR project sites in Yamoussoukro, Bouake, and the Korhogo area.

PEPFAR, the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, provides funding and technical assistance to HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment projects throughout Cote d’Ivoire and is expanding projects in the North.
Dr. Monica Nolan, outgoing Chief of Party for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who led the PEPFAR delegation, said the mission left two striking impressions.
“There is a critical lack of qualified personnel and commodities which undermines the quality and accessibility of health, educational, and social services in the region. However we were also struck by the incredible commitment and resilience of local leaders, health personnel, and staff from local organizations that continue to do exceptional work under very difficult circumstances,” Dr. Nolan said. “These two factors – the great need and the determination to act – confirm the urgency of PEPFAR’s strategies to reinforce and extend our support for HIV/AIDS programs in the North as part of a national response.”

On March 7, PEPFAR partner Population Services International (PSI) launched its project Operation Haute Protection in Korhogo with a ceremony that featured addresses by Minister of Family and Social Affairs Jeanne PEUHMOND, Forces Nouvelles representative Gen. Michel Gueu, U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission Vincent Valle, and Miss Cote d’Ivoire 2006 Halima Diomandé, who urged her listeners to be tested for HIV. The project provides HIV/AIDS prevention, testing, and care services with links to treatment for the uniformed services and their partners.

Addressing the large crowd of government, military, civil-society, and religious leaders at the launch, Valle thanked government and Forces Nouvelles leaders for collaborating to make the program a reality.
“I would like to invite the entire military hierarchy to take an active part in the success of Operation Haute Protection,” Mr. Valle said. “It’s by protecting your personnel against HIV/AIDS that we can build a stronger army for tomorrow. For all the uniformed services, Operation Haute Protection should be considered the weapon to defeat the spread of HIV/AIDS.”