YPSA

Workplace Interventions in Garments Factories (HIV/AIDS GFATM 912)

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Name of the Project:

Providing Primary Prevention of HIV and Risk Reduction through Workplace Interventions in Garments Factories/Industries (GFATM#912) of RCC.

Donor:  Global Fund, Principle Recipient: Save the Children-USA

Goal:
To limit the spread and impact of HIV in the country through preventing HIV/AIDS/STIs and reducing risks among the garment workers

General Objective:

• Mainstreaming of life skill education including safer sex in collaboration with BGMEA at workplace and implementation of workplace policy through continues advocacy to ensure support; providing support to ensure services for STI and sexual & reproductive health problem through facilitate effective referral mechanism to nearby health facilities

• To capacitate garment factory workers through conduction of like skill education using peer approach; providing training for the master trainers, peer educator; demonstrate and playing video documentary related to HIV/AIDS to ensure source of information beyond the education session.

Duration: February 2008-March 2012

Location & Target Coverage:

Background:

To fight against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, the GOVT. of Bangladesh has received grants from GFATM along with Save the Children-USA as the principal recipient. The title of the HIV/AIDS component of RCC is “Expanding HIV Prevention in Bangladesh”. There are 13 package of RCC (Rolling Continuation Channel) under this title. YPSA Consortium has been implementing the package of GF-912, which title is “Providing Primary Prevention of HIV and Risk Reduction through Workplace Interventions in Garments Industries”.

The GF-912 project focuses on prevention of HIV through workplace intervention in the garment factory and in the community. The activities include-national workshop for advocacy, endorsement & implementation of a workplace policy, sensitization meeting with BGMEA & other stakeholders, LSE at workplace, peer education, video show, distribution of BCC materials, development of audio song on HIV & AIDS issue, interactive theatre show, management of STI and other SRH cases etc. The activities are being implemented both at workplace, and at residential setting of young garment workers and their neighbors

Major Activities of RCC:

• Organize National level workshop with national garment export institution and owners
• Organize sensitize meeting with BGMEA, Garment owners, Workers’ representativeness and health service providers
• Day Observation (WAD, IWD, May day, etc)
• Joint event with BGMEA (Workers fair & others)
• Arrange regular coordination meetings with associate partners as per approved coordination framework [Quarterly Consortium Committee-CC Meeting
• Bi-monthly PMU-Partners meeting
• Monthly/ Bi-monthly coordination meeting between AO and SP/ PMU team meeting
• Annual review meeting
• Regional Coordination meeting
• Printing of LSE Implementation strategy
• Develop and produce one page take home communication material
• Finalize and printing of flip chart including guideline
• Booklet for garment workers as communication material
• Training of master trainers on life skill education for the prevention of HIV
• Training/orientation of  relevant clinicians on case management, recording and reporting of STIs with BGMEA support
• Training of peer educator on life skill education for the prevention of HIV
• Common refreshers for Peer Educators including Master Trainers
• Master Trainer Assembly
• Conduction of 4-day LSE sessions on HIV prevention in the workplace
• Mapping of health care facilities for STI, SRH management and general health of garment factory workers within and local to the factories through rapid situation assessment with BGMEA support in Chittagong.
• Management of STI and other SRH cases
• Video presentation and discussion at the home of garment workers for the prevention of HIV
• Develop one audio documentary on HIV and STI prevention to increase knowledge retention among the Garment Factory Workers considering local language and culture
• Interactive Theatre on HIV and STI

Major Accomplishment:

Consortium Partner:

Young power in Social Action (YPSA)
HIV/AIDS and STD Alliance Bangladesh (HASAB)
Samaj Kalyan Unnayan Sangstha (SKUS)

Strategic Partners (SPs):

Nirmol Foundation, NOWZUWAN, NONGOR, JUGANTAR SAMAJ UNNAYAN SANGSTHA, AWAC, Step To Alleviate Poverty (STAP), SAJAN SOCIAL SERVICE SOCIETY, Mamata, Nishriti, Ghashful, Image, Badhan, ANNESHA, UNITE Theatre For Social Action (UTSA), DRISTY

Yasmin Akther: Benefited by Health Service and Making Benefit of Many

1. Child or Beneficiary’s name	Yasmin Akther
2. District and Country	Cox’sbazar, Bangladesh
3. Age	20
4. Sex	FEMALE
5. Current context-family, where they live, their day-to-day life, the school they go to, difficulties they  face	Yasmin Akter lived at Pahartoli, Cox’sbazar. She has two brothers and one sister and She is the eldest among them. Her father Mr. Showkat Alam is maintaining the daily expenses of his family by running a small scale business and her mother Ms. Shabekunnahar is simply a housewife. Because of poverty and being unconscious, she got married after passing her SSC examination and had a child within a short time. But, after a few days she got divorced and had to return to her parents’ house along with her child. But it became too hard to maintain whole family with her father’s little income and so they moved into Chittagong, the commercial capital of Bangladesh. Here, life wasn’t so easy and therefore, Yasmin Akter had to join HB Garments in Welfare department. Thus, she started leading her life as an ordinary garments worker.
6. Their story- what happened to them, when, how and why; – why and how they became involved with Save the Children programs? What their life was like before? How things have changed/improved?	Yasmin used to reach the office at 8 a.m and return home after 7 p.m. In office her duty was to maintain workers’ health issues. While YPSA consortium started LSE session, a program funded by Save the Children USA, for preventing HIV/AIDS among the garments workers, she joined in the LSE session. In the mean time, she could manage herself to know ins and outs of LSE. She also came to know about reproductive health problem of her own as well as she learnt about its complexity and prevention. She couldn’t discuss it with any doctor because she felt shy to do so. Furthermore, she lacked time and solvency. But, at that stage she could realize the risk of the problem from the LSE program. But she couldn’t get any solution of her problem. At that moment, YPSA Consortium started STI/SRH services in her factory. In the first session, Yasmin discussed her problem with YPSA’s doctor freely and the doctor prescribed her proper medicines. After 1st session she started to feel better so in the 2nd session she further discussed her improvement with the doctor and doctor gave her further some medicine to continue. After continuing medicine some more days she cured completely from disease. Now she is leading a healthy and normal life. It is worth to mention that she didn’t have to pay anything for it.
7. Description of where they live/their environment; their attitude; their appearance; their expression when you talk to them; their interests, ambitions	Yasmin was a rural woman. Now she lives in town but most of the women surrounding of her area are unconscious about STI/SRH as they have a little education. Moreover they consider the discussion about STI/SRH/AIDS as very bad. So Yasmin thinks that program like STI/SRH is also necessary as well as beneficiary for her co-workers also. Now she urged all to openly discuss their problems with the doctor. It has brought a change among the workers. Now they feel an air of confident and as a result they can contribute more to the production than earlier.
8. Their views- Please write down their exact words relating to all parts of their story, what happened, why and when, how they feel today, how the project affected them!	While talking about LSE, Yasmin said, “Most of the garments workers are illiterate, unconscious and they have a little chance to know about health issues. Moreover they are hindered by financial problem to solve such a problem.As STI/SRH is completely free service and it is provided directly in work place, it is easy and comfortable for the garments workers to receive the service. Further it is found that the beneficiaries of this program are much more confident to their works than those who don’t get the service.”
9. Any other quotes from the child	“Garments workers will be more benefited if HIV counselling & testing is included and STI/SRH service along with LSE is provided frequently and regularly”
10. Comments from their family; the program officers; community-based organizations	Tawhid Murad, APO, YPSA said,” Actually it become possible as she was aware on the Sexually Reproductive Health through participating LSE session and hence discussed freely her problem with the doctors”.
11. Background information (as detailed as possible) on the Save the Children project they’ve been involved with	“HIV Prevention and Control among High-Risk Populations and Vulnerable Young People in Bangladesh” is a collaborative project between the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and Save the Children-USA funded by Global Fund.To contribute to the overall project goal YPSA Consortium along with its other associates (YPSA, HASAB, SKUS) has been implementing the package of GF-912, which title is “Providing Primary Prevention of HIV and Risk Reduction through Workplace Interventions in Garments Industries”.The project focused on prevention and risk reduction of HIV among the garment factory workers through workplace intervention in the garment factory and in the community.The activities include-national workshop for advocacy, smooth execution of workplace policy, Life Skill Education through peer education, capacity building of Master Trainer and peer educator, video show, development & distribution of BCC materials, Interactive Theatre, STI & SRH Service etc. The activities have been implemented both at workplace, and at residential setting of garment workers and their neighbors.Goal of the project is to limit the spread and impact of HIV in the country through preventing HIV/AIDS/STIs and reducing risks among the garment workers.
12. Link to strategic objectives	Mainstreaming of life skill education including safer sex in collaboration with BGMEA at workplace and implementation of workplace policy through continues advocacy to ensure support; providing support to ensure services for STI and sexual & reproductive health problem through facilitate effective referral mechanism to nearby health facilities
13. Description of accompanying Photo(s)  (location, date, what activity is being demonstrated)PLEASE INCLUDE A NUMBER OF HIGH RESOLUTION (ie. AT LEAST 1 MB in SIZE) PHOTOS OF THE PERSON CLOSEUP AND IN ACTIVIT(IES) RELATED TO THIS STUDY!	Location: HB garment factory Date: 22.12.2011 Yasmin Akther benefited by STI and SRH services provided by YPSA Consortium in the garment factory

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