HIV is a compulsory subject in the primary school curriculum of Sierra Leone, however teachers are often ill-prepared to teach about HIV in the classroom; they have not been trained and lack the confidence to teach the lessons, therefore all too often HIV is not taught about at all.

Sierra Leone's Community of Change: project update

A Successful End

Working with our local partners FAWE Sierra Leone, from 2004 Children in Crisis delivered HIV & AIDS education to children in the primary schools of Freetown and Kambia. Our project was successfully drawn to a close at the end of April 2011, by the end of the project we had:

• Trained a total of 371 teachers, equipping them with skills and knowledge to go on to deliver engaging and factually correct HIV and AIDs education to primary school children.
• Trained 78 Community Teacher Associations who have gone on to deliver awareness raising sessions to 1,881 parents, who are able to reinforce their children’s learning about HIV and AIDs and are able to support them to avoid risky situations.
• Reached 20,491 pupils with key information and messages about HIV and AIDs, increasing their knowledge and raising their awareness about safe practices and risky situations. 

The HIV & AIDS education programme developed awareness surrounding the disease and develop effective teaching methods for educating children about its transmission. Children in Crisis believe that at present this is the only viable option for defeating an HIV pandemic, or at least slowing its spread and that that this model can be replicable within Sierra Leone and other countries.

‘I have learnt a lot about HIV, through my own work and through attending workshops. I can teach my own children at home. People ask us questions even outside the training session because they know we are well-trained. Sometimes we convince people, not only the ones we have trained, because they do not really believe HIV is real. Even the chiefs, we talk to them and convince them. I talk with my husband and my children about it’ - HIV & AIDS Teacher Trainer

A full evaluation report for our HIV & AIDS education project can be accessed by clicking here.