A host of students from various institutions in Limbe have been enrolled as peer educators to sensitize their friends on HIV/AIDS, the consequences of drug abuse, violence in the school milieu and other forms of deviant behaviours.
After a 2-day sensitization meeting with a sensitization team from MINESEC Yaounde, the peer educators were armed with skills to transfer the knowledge on HIV/AIDSto their peers during this weeklong period of the FENASSCO Games.
According to the Focal Point for Primary Prevention of HIV Amongst Adolescence in the school milieu at DOVAS (MINESEC), Mme Abah Marie Egyptienne, they decided to use this period of the FENASSCO Games in order to reach out to a mass population of students. In her words: “We are here to sensitize the students on HIV/AIDS, Drug abuse, violence, drug consumption in school and given that we have so many students who are taking part in this event, we decided to use the opportunity to reach out to a mass target population.
“We have had a 2-day training session with the peer educators and we have sensitized them on HIV/AIDS prevention, drug consumption and violence.
“After the 2-day training, they will now get to the field especially in the dormitories and the various sporting grounds to sensitize their peers on how to avoid the consequences of drugs consumption, violence in the school milieu. You know the youth can better listen to their peers and act accordingly.”
Working in partnership with UNICEF, Mrs Abahindicated that her team has created an app on the phone known as kobo collect, wherestudents can interact and ask questions and receive answers immediately.
“We have a toll free line – 8555, which the students can call or send JOINon SMS free of charge and they will be replied immediately.
Meanwhile, one of the peer educators, Blessing Nalova, was at the GHS Limbehandball court sensitizing her peers on HIV. She told her peers who gathered to listen to her sensitization message on HIV and the measures that have been put in place medically to alleviate the situation. Hear her: “HIV is not a death sentence, it is just the virus. It is when you fail to take your drugs that the virus replicates and advances in your system which will eventually lead to death.”
