What happens after a national workshop?
The Uganda National Training of Stigma Trainers Workshop took place in June 2005 in Jinja. The Regional Stigma Training Project had partnered with TASO to organise the workshop and linked with Nafophanu (national network of people living with HIV), NACWOLA (Womens network of people with HIV) and POMU (Positive Men’ Union) to choose the participating organisations.
Though the initial number of trainers was small, the rolling out of anti-stigma activities after the workshop was impressive.
TASO trainers integrated anti-stigma modules into their training programmes for counsellors, home-based care volunteers and health providers.
NACWOLA adapted the Stigma Toolkit to use in the community and provided stigma training exercises as part of their core training for women and children on coping with disclosure and family histories. They also trained women peer educators to roll out the training further.
THETA, the traditional healers association, ran community workshops for healers and traditional birth attendants on HIV and stigma.
Nafophanu took the training to Northern Uganda, a much neglected area because of the conflict, and trained community leaders using one of the small grants provided by the Alliance.
The trainer from UNASO, the Uganda Network of AIDS Service Organisations, organised an anti-stigma workshop for spiritual leaders, which resulted in pledges of greater tolerance, understanding and stigma-free sermons.
The Alliance has recently opened an office in Kampala, Uganda, to support a programme of involvement of people living with HIV in prevention, treatment and care. The stigma trainers are helping to lead this initiative and to roll out stigma awareness training to health care providers across several districts.
