Monrovia – The Swedish International Development Agency (Sida) in collaboration with the Joint United Nations Programme on AIDS (UNAIDS), under its H4+ / H6 project, has extended a training program for journalists and representatives of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in additional three counties including River Cess, Gbarpolu and Grand Cape Mount.
Previous trainings were organized in Maryland, River Gee and Grand Kru Counties in 2014, bringing the total number of media practitioners and CSOs’ members trained under the project to 60 (sixty counties) in the six counties.
Organized by the Anti-AIDS Media Network (AAMIN), a Liberian based media group, in collaboration with the National AIDS Commission (NAC), these trainings aim at strengthening media/CSOs to increase demand for utilization of H4+/H6 services including Prevention of Mother-to-Child (PMTCT) of Transmission of HIV and Antenatal Care (ANC) in the targeted six counties.
Latest training which took placed in River Cess, Grand Cape Mount and Gbapolu trained about 30 journalists including civil society representatives, under the revised project title, H6.
The H6 aims to increase coverage and access to quality comprehensive maternal, newborn health care services; strengthening Maternal Newborn Death awareness at all Levels; strengthening community including men’s participation for maternal and newborn care services and improving monitoring and evaluation of maternal and newborn health services.
The training focused on how media and civil society representatives can use their expertise to educate the general population on the importance of taking advantage of PMTCT and ANC services to help save their unborn babies.
Speaking at separate opening of the week long training in the new counties, the Executive Director of the Anti-AIDS Media Network, Necus M. Andrews challenged the journalists and CSOs’ representatives to scale-up efforts of creating demand for PMTCT utilization which is part of their social responsibility to the nation and their counties.
Mr. Andrews said the lives of citizens especially those in need of heath care services rest in the hands of the participants.
According to him, this can only be achieved through proper information dissemination and increase awareness building on the use of PMTCT services.
“Don’t consider yourself only as just journalists and Civil Society representatives during the implementation of this project in your respective counties, but consider yourself as a person called to save lives and to keep people healthy and strong. I wish you the best in your quest,” Mr. Andrews emphasized.
AAMIN Executive Director said gone are the days when HIV positive pregnant women gave birth to an HIV infected babies because the H6 project is being implemented in the six selected counties to address such issue.
He further urged the participants to use their persuasive journalistic and Civil Society techniques in encouraging pregnant women to seek care at each health facility to reduce the high numbers of Maternal Newborn Deaths.
According to a 2013 data released by UNICEF, Maternal and Newborn Deaths ratio in Liberia stands at 770/100,000 and 38/1,000 per life birth. “This indicates that out of 100,000 women who go to give birth at the various health facilities in the country 770 of them can die, while out of 1,000 children born, 38 of them can die,” the report maintained.
For Mr. Andrews, “This is a scaring ratio that needs to be tackled holistically to reduce the deaths. You have the platform through which the citizens can be informed to do the right things get involved and safe live lives, don’t sit on the fence,” Mr. Andrews urged.
Station Managers in the three counties who took part in the training welcomed the H6 project interventions in their counties and promised to get involved in informing the citizens, as well as representatives of civil society.
Mr. Togar Christian Chea, Station Manager of River Cess Broadcasting System (RBS) committed the station to working with the H6 implementing partners to create the needed awareness in educating the citizens about the importance of the PMTCT services.
“Preventing mothers from transmitting HIV to their unborn children is critical to the protection of lives, so we will do our best,” Mr. Chea noted.
Mr. Botoe McCay, Station Manager of Voice of Kpo in Gbarpolu County praised the H6 interventions and craved collaboration of partners with Voice of Kpo.
Radio Cape Mount Station Manager, Andrew Massalay said the training was the first of its kind for journalists in the county to acquire knowledge about HIV and AIDS related issues. Mr. Massaley wished that more training will be conducted for journalists with focus on HIV reporting.
For his part, Mr. Henry Senkjue, Field Officer of Child Care International in Gbapolu County lauded the Anti-AIDS Media Network for the training program which he said will help support their works as CSOs.
“We depend on the media while the media depends on us. I can assure you, Anti-AIDS Media Network, that we will work together to achieve this share vision of creating demand for H6 services utilization,” Mr. Senkjue noted.
Meanwhile, the Anti-AIDS Media Network has established three associations in River Cess, Gbapolu and Cope Mount Counties to help enhance the work of the H6 project implementing partners.
