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After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future.
 
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EVIH-T - Haiti

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Launched in November 2013 and ongoing through 2017, this social and behaviour change communication (SBCC) campaign was carried out as part of the National AIDS Control Program’s (NACP) efforts in Haiti to create a collective, national response to the AIDS pandemic. The campaign’s goals were threefold: encourage Haitians to participate in the fight against HIV and AIDS, promote behaviours that reduce the risk of HIV transmission, and strengthen support for people living with HIV. The Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs (JHU-CCP) worked with national and international non-governmental organisations in four departments to carry out the campaign.

 

The campaign, "Eviter le VIH et sa transmission (Avoid HIV and Its Transmission)", in Haiti used the acronym EVIH-T - "éviter" (pronounced "ayveetay") means "avoid" in French and Creole. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded project was a partnership of JHU-CCP with Jhpiego and Save the Children, involving the Foundation for Reproductive Health and Family Life Education (FOSREF), the Haitian Institute for Community Health (INHSAC), and Promoters of the Zero AIDS Objective (POZ) as local, NGO partners.

Communication Strategies

The project involved: strengthening the capacity of Government of Haiti partners at the central and departmental levels; developing of NGO leadership; developing relationships with community and individuals; and offering HIV services, with the objectives of changing social norms and creating an enabling environment for the adoption of preventive behaviours, as well as increased demand for services and reduced stigma for those living with HIV.

 

EVIH-T supported World AIDS Day planning to promote the campaign and introduced the communication components of the campaign: banners in the streets, posters at health institutions and community organisations, SMS (text messaging) and robocalls, and radio spots airing on national radio. These media shared the same message: Sida! Mwen pap pran. Mwen pap bay. (AIDS! I’m not catching it. I’m not passing it on.) The radio spots were designed to promote personal responsibility, for example: “My life is my own. I have to protect it. "[...] I’m not taking any risks so the AIDS virus won’t get inside..." or "That’s why I’m controlling my sexual activity. I’m not hooking up with a bunch of partners right and left." The spots also addressed stigma and support issues for people living with HIV, e.g.: "I’ve been living with the AIDS virus now for three years. When I found out, I thought my life was over. But, thanks to the support of friends, family and coworkers, and also thanks to the medications I always take every day, I’m beginning to love life again. [...] I’m not giving my wife AIDS or anyone else. With all my strength, with all my conviction, I say: AIDS! I’m not passing it on!"

 

In August of 2014, a sport-involved campaign was added using the slogan "Sport for Life" as messaging on T-shirts and television and radio spots. (See the video below.)

Development Issues

HIV/AIDS, Health

Partners

The Foundation for Reproductive Health and Family Life Education (FOSREF), the Haitian Institute for Community Health (INHSAC) and Promoters of the Zero AIDS Objective (POZ), USAID, JHU-CCP, Jhpiego, Save the Children.

Sources

JHU-CCP website and USAID website, September 1 2015. Image credit: Johns Hopkins University Center for Global Health