HIV/AIDS

Alumni of the Inwent programme HIV/Aids Blended Learning in China. Copyright Inwent gGmbH/Wei Xiuqi

The numbers are shocking: According to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) more than 30 million people are HIV positive. Every year around two million people die of AIDS. More than 11 million children worldwide have lost one or both parents to the illness, and in the hardest hit countries in sub-Saharan Africa, around one-forth of the population is infected. In this region the pandemic has reached such proportions that it is threatening the entire social and economic development of these countries, for the majority of those infected are in the most productive age group: between 15 and 49 years of age. When they fall prey to this illness, their families descend into poverty. Children are forced to take responsibility for supporting surviving family members and go to work instead of attending school. Yet education and knowledge are fundamental factors for development. The number of new infections is also rising in Asia, the European Union’s eastern neighbours, and in the Union itself. UNAIDS estimates that around 150,000 people were newly infected in Eastern Europe and Central Asia in 2007. With 1.6 million people infected in this region, this corresponds to an increase in the rate of new infections of 150 percent since 2001.

AIDS is one of the central factors inhibiting development – a central reason that battling the spread of this illness worldwide remains one of the most important tasks facing the international community. Many factors promote the spread of HIV and AIDS. Poverty, inequality of the sexes, insufficient health care systems, low levels of education in populations, migration and flight, and armed conflicts all contribute to the ever increasing spread of AIDS. This is why AIDS is a cross-sectoral topic at Inwent, an issue we address through a variety of programmes in widely differing areas. Our capacity building programmes in education, business, statistics and health deal with aspects such as prevention, social and economic effects, HIV data systems, and treatment and care of those afflicted. Southern and Eastern Africa are regional focal points for these programmes. We are also increasingly working in this area with our partner countries in Asia.

Inwent offers professional training programmes for government personnel and instructors in teacher training centres (multiplier training) and educates small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) who would like to introduce workplace programmes. Through capacity building Inwent ensures that statistical information is used as a basis for HIV/AIDS programmes, and runs training and management courses for health care personnel. Additionally we support civil society initiatives such as non-governmental organisations and self-help groups.

Online courses developed in cooperation with organisations on location in Africa or Asia are an important instrument in Inwent’s fight against HIV and AIDS. These courses provide medical personnel with information about the illness and methods of prevention and treatment. In China, for example, Inwent’s online course offered in cooperation with the China Preventive Medicine Association (CPMA) is the first ever online course on prevention and treatment in Chinese. This online platform hosts dialogue events for Chinese policy makers, employees from the justice department and government, members of women’s organisations, social workers and individuals, helping create an environment conducive to the prevention and control of HIV and AIDS.

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