Children & their Psychosocial Needs: Experiences from India

1. Children & their Psychosocial Needs: Experiences from India Dr. Balwant Singh India HIV/AIDS Alliance 11th July 2004

2. India HIV/AIDS Alliance Goal  Purpose  Outcomes Goal: reduced spread of HIV and impacts of AIDS mitigated Purpose: Increased community action for - and access to - prevention, care and impact mitigation efforts Outcome 1: Improved coverage of effective community focused AIDS efforts Outcome 2: Strengthened leadership and capacity of civil society to respond to AIDS Outcome 3: Improved institutional, organisational and policy environment for community AIDS responses Outcome 1 Outcome 2 Outcome 3 eff efforts AIDS

3. Overview of Programmes MAMTA 4 Districts in Delhi 7 Implementing NGOs Alliance India Andhra Pradesh (AIAP) LEPRA India 14 Districts in AP Vassavya Mahila Mandali 9 Districts in Andhra Pradesh 10 Implementing NGOs Palmyrah Workers Development Society 13 Districts in Tamilnadu 20 Implementing NGOs

4. How We Work India HIV/AIDS Alliance National State Delhi Lead Partner Andhra Pradesh Lead Partner Tamilnadu Lead Partner INGO District INGO INGO INGO INGO INGO INGO INGO INGO INGO INGO INGO

5. Children & HIV/AIDS in India • 170,000 children below 14 years are living with HIV/AIDS • Estimated 14% of 4.5 million HIV cases are children below 14 years • Every year nearly 22,837 new born children are infected and about 11,434 die due to HIV/AIDS • 120,000 AIDS orphans • More than 50% of the 16,000 new HIV infections that occur daily are in the 15-25 years age group • An additional 10% of new infections occur among children under 15 years Source: UNICEF, The state of the world’s children, 2003; NACO 2003, UNAIDS, HIV/AIDS, A Briefing Package, May 2000

6. Children Affected by HIV/AIDS Programme Reach • 7,270 children are receiving support from 2001-2004 • In 2002-2003, programme reached 5000 children and approximately 50% were girls • In Delhi, programme reached less no. of CAA but supported 3000 other vulnerable children during 2002-2003

7. Working With Children Child Centred Programme Child Rights Child Participation Gender • Strategic Priorities • Reducing vulnerability of children • through care and support • Ensuring children’s voices are heard • Influencing policy issues through • advocacy

8. Working With Children….Cont’d Reducing the vulnerability Influencing policy issues by advocacy Ensuring children’s voices are heard Psycho-social support Home visits & emotional care Recreational activities (games/plays/songs/exposure visits etc) Community foster care Information on rights and vulnerability issues Life skills and vocational training Recurring deposit scheme Children are active partners in programme planning/ implementation /monitoring Children happy clubs owned by them Children working group at State/District/ village level National policy Review

9. Children and their Psychosocial Needs Children’s voices from the field Emotional Support in addition to basic Needs ‘ The happiest days of my life were when I was with my parents’. Nithiya,14 year old Love and Care from Adults ‘I have lost my mother. My father doesn’t bother about us. Whenever I go out from my home people look at me in a very suspicious way. I feel so hurt that time’ Nisha, 18 year Friendship ‘Nobody plays with me in the school. I don’t feel like going to school anymore’

10. Children&their Psychosocial Needs….Cont’d Respect from Peers and Community Members ‘I want to join Army because than people from my village will give me the respect’. Praveen, 14 year boy Understanding Feelings and Emotions ‘I do not want to join in the hostel. I want to live only with my parents’ ‘My mother is so sick but we do not have money to get even food to eat’ "We clear the debts of the family by working on daily wage basis. Though we are interested in studying it is not possible, as we have to work and earn”.

11. “I wish the community would treat affected children with love and affection like they treat others” Mohan’s Story… Mohan, 14, lost both parents to HIV/AIDS and eldest in a family of 4 sons He remains haunted by his parent’s death- Both died the same way. My father became so thin like a broomstick before his death. My mother was bed-ridden for last eight months. She could not eat rice. In her last 15 days, she ate virtually nothing. She vomited everything out and I couldn't do any thing? Burden of caring for orphan’s has shifted to old grandparents. He feels it – My grandfather is very old but he still works very hard just because of us. He remembers his early Childhood… Looking back I think our early childhood was happy. We played a lot with friends. There was no tension, loneliness,responsibility. But now we can not do that anymore.

12. Programmatic ResponsesPsychosocial Support as an Integral Part of Programmes • Sensitizing Families and Communities: • Community Foster Care • Building the Capacity of parents, peers, • volunteers • Enabling an Advocacy Network of Orphans and • Vulnerable Children (OVC) • Facilitating Children’s Working Group at • Village, District and State levels • Review of National Policies on HIV/AIDS and • Children • Child/Adolescent Friendly Information Centres

13. Next Steps… Programmes • Strengthen community based programmes with OVC • Involving children throughout the process • Scaling up and reaching out to the most vulnerable children Advocacy and Policy • Country situational analysis on HIV/AIDS and OVC • Work in close partnership with government • Promote multi-sectoral responses