1 By Noreen M. Huni 6 th October, 2008 Dublin Outcomes of the East & Southern Africa Regional Inter-Agency Task Team (RIATT) Children’s Conference in Dar-es-Salaam

Situation in the Region  Greater political and financial attention, considerable progress towards achieving universal access to prevention, treatment, care and support for children living with and affected by HIV and AIDS.  Providing antiretroviral treatment for children,  Preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV and  Supporting the care of orphans and vulnerable children, especially through strengthening family-centred and community-based responses.

Situation in the Region continued  1.8 million children are living with HIV  11.4 million children under 18 have lost one or both parents to AIDS.  Increased child mortality rates due to HIV  AIDS - leading cause of death among children younger than five years in six countries, all in East and Southern Africa.  Families available, but weakened.

RIATT - East and Southern Africa: Overview  February 2006: Global Partners Forum’s recommendation of establishing regional task teams.  October 2006: The East and Southern Africa Regional Inter Agency Task Team (RIATT) was formed - 23 organizations.  Strives to build consensus around a regional strategy for children affected by HIV/AIDS and conduct ongoing research in the region.  Focus – resource tracking, social protection, advocacy, regional engagement and social innovation.  The conference results culminate from the past one and half years’ RIATT led work in the region.

Collectively reviewed progress and evidence for action needed to scale up the response to children affected by HIV and AIDS delegates. Historic nature of children and older carers participation

Recommendations: 4 Critical Areas for Urgent Action for Scaling Up. Calling on Governments, community & faith based organizations, international and regional bodies to: Universal Access to prevention, treatment, care and support for children infected and affected by HIV and AIDS in the region. Strengthen Families & Communities Keep Parents and Children Alive Human Rights for Vulnerable Children Increase Effectiveness of Services and Funding

 Increase resource allocation  improve children’s access to early diagnosis,  child appropriate treatment,  child friendly voluntary counseling and testing, and  supervisory and follow-up support for adherence.  Expand the reach of vertical transmission prevention programmes for both women and men,  adopt a family centered approach, including older carers, to testing, treatment, adherence, counseling and support programmes. Keep Parents and Children Alive

 Link and integrate nutritional support into treatment programmes.  Incorporate awareness of nutrition and positive living into support group activities for both adults and children.  Conduct research to understand how children are infected with HIV beyond vertical transmission, such as through sexual abuse and caring for sick family members. Keep Parents and Children Alive Continued

 Gear relevant support towards the family, rather than only orphaned children Majority of them are cared for within a family context. Institutional care should be considered a last resort.  Cash transfers a viable means of strengthening families’ capacities to provide care and support should be aligned to national policies and legislation relating to poverty and children.  Strengthen skills of child, youth and older caregivers with age and gender sensitive training, including life and parenting skills, and awareness on sexuality and HIV and AIDS. Strengthen Families and Communities as Units of Care and Support

 Create formal structures and systems for effective and meaningful child participation at national, district and community levels. Engage adolescent children in designing, implementing, and monitoring programmes that concern them.  Support families with children under 5 through effective early childhood care and development programmes.  Hire, train and adequately pay volunteers and community health care workers to increase accessibility of health systems to older carers and children, and linking them to needed services. Strengthen Families and Communities as Units of Care and Support

Increase Effectiveness of Services and Funding  Align all responses with:  National AIDS Plans and  National Plans of Action on “Orphans and Vulnerable Children” at all levels of government and ensure regional responses are aligned with plans of regional bodies.  Ensure vulnerable children are included in national development and sectoral plans.

Increase Effectiveness of Services and Funding  Improve coordination between ministries and all key stakeholders providing services to children at all levels.  Integrate social protection policies and plans into national development policies and plans.  Strengthen national social welfare systems, with a focus on care and protection of vulnerable children at all levels.

Increase Effectiveness of Services and Funding  Strengthen monitoring and evaluation mechanisms and encourage effective resource tracking from national to community level.  Update regularly country situation analyses on vulnerable children to keep up with realities on the ground.  Improve regional and national data collection on vulnerable children and their carers by disaggregating by age and gender.  Emphasize the importance of civil registration systems, particularly birth and death registration in the legal protection of children

Human Rights for Vulnerable Children  Incorporate issues of gender inequality, violence, and abuse particularly of girls into HIV prevention policies and programmes.  Reinforce the right to appropriate sexual and reproductive health education and information for children and older carers.  Strengthen and increase the number of child friendly courts and increase resources available for legal aid for children and older carers.  Strengthen legal frameworks designed to protect children and ensure their timely implementation.

 Include all vulnerable children in legislation, programmes, plans, and delivery of services, not just children orphaned and affected by AIDS.  Define vulnerability at national, rather than international level, with inputs from children, older carers, and community and faith based organizations, to ensure that no vulnerable children are excluded or stigmatized. Human Rights for Vulnerable Children

 Vulnerable children:  Orphaned  Other children affected by HIV and AIDS  Children affected by armed conflict, extreme poverty, and children with significant disabilities.  Provide free good quality primary and secondary schooling and financing opportunities for tertiary level education, which include life skills.  Support for transport, uniforms, and school materials must be provided. Human Rights for Vulnerable Children

 Global leaders, the East & Southern Region looks up to your intensified interest and support:  Policy and programming support  For resource mobilization for the region focusing the four critical areas as prioritized by the regional stakeholders. Conclusion  Opportunity for inter- regional learning and dialogue

“The pain of the past does not have to be today’s reality.” Iyanla Vanzant – Yesterday I Cried. Together we can all run with them out of this painful past, and walk with them into the future of tomorrow. Thank you!