Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2001. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Cresent Societies - 14 June 2001
Caroline Hurford in Mombasa
"We achieved progress in making the priorities agreed at last year's Pan-African Conference a reality in the Societies' respective strategies and programmes," said Francoise Le Goff, Head of the Federation's Nairobi Regional Delegation. "Participants also made pledges for the year, which indicated their understanding of the need for realistic intentions."
The Ouagadougou Declaration was signed by 51 African National Societies at the fifth Pan African Conference, held in the Burkina Faso capital in September 2000. The document calls for a massive increase in resources to finance and implement vastly expanded programmes and as well as urging that food security issues and public health problems such as the HIV/AIDS pandemic be addressed through concrete measures.
In Mombasa, participants heard case studies such as a cash-for-work programme in Ethiopia, a tools and seeds programme in Kenya and a community-based early warning system in Rwanda. They discussed these methods of improving food security, with a view to adopting them as potential ways of avoiding suffering brought on by lack of food.
The critical role of volunteers - key in the African Red Cross Red Crescent Health Initiative (ARCHI 2010) - was highlighted during sessions devoted to volunteer management and training. ARCHI 2010 is working to reverse the dramatic spread of infectious diseases in Africa by mobilising networks of volunteers for preventative and health promotion activities to improve healthy behaviour at community and family level. The 21 countries with the highest HIV prevalence are in Sub-Saharan Africa. The volunteers are well placed to reverse these trends through peer education and promotion of condoms and safe practices. At Mombasa, it was announced that five out of six National Societies in the region have prepared their country plans to combat HIV/AIDS, in which volunteers will play a significant role.
Community theatre, a technique used to promote safe sex, was demonstrated in the Mombasa meeting through a performance by a group of Somali volunteers who sang songs about AIDS which were specially composed for the conference. The actors also mimed a sketch about a man who left his wife and baby for a prostitute, then returned to his family, only to die from AIDS. It is hoped that the use of drama and music together will increase awareness of HIV/AIDS across Somalia.
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