Publication and Promotion

Title: Communication and Promotion HIV/AIDs program in the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Development:

By the beginning of the 21st century, AIDS was one of the principal causes of death among both men and women of reproductive age in the world. In 2000, more than 13 million women were infected with AIDS; 10% of all the HIV infections at the global level come via mothers who transmit the infection to their children. This program to communicate the symptoms, dangers, and treatment of HIV/AIDS, while simultaneously teaching about and promoting HIV/AIDS prevention, will be implemented in the two countries that share the island of Hispaniola (the land that Christopher Columbus loved best)-the Dominican Republic and Republic of Haiti. All publicity about the program will be conducted in both Spanish and Kreyol (French). The program targets those young people who are most at risk: babies at birth and throughout the period that they are breast fed, young people of reproductive age, especially women, and all young people who live in conditions of poverty.

Every day 7,000 young people around the world contract the HIV virus. The principal reasons are a lack of information about the correct use of condoms, a shortage of specialized health services, the conditions of poverty in which they live, and the discrimination that befalls women. Every minute, 5 young people around the globe are infected with the HIV virus. Of those who are infected after they are no longer breast fed, at least half are less than 25 years old and 85% of all young people infected live in developing countries.

In many countries, 6 of every 10 women suffer from a sexually transmitted disease. Almost half of those infected have no symptoms, but all run the risk of infertility, cervical cancer, and other related problems. Women suffer disproportionately from infections of the reproductive organs, including sexually transmitted diseases, compared to men.

A local newspaper published the fact that nearly 50% of Dominicans live in poverty, which was confirmed by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). According to the 2007 census, there were 9,365,818 inhabitants of the Dominican Republic in that year, which means that more than 4,500,000 Dominicans live below the poverty level. Statistics also indicate that approximately 1,400,000 Dominicans are single mothers, an increasing number of whom are minors.

Indicators:

More than 25% of Dominican population with scarce resources will be able to benefit from this HIV/AIDS education and prevention program. The General Direction of the Control of Infections of Sexual Transmission and AIDS (DIGECITSS) of the Secretary of State of the Public Health and Social Attendance (SESPAS) estimates that in the Dominican Republic around 120,000 people are living with the HIV virus, around nine times the reported total of accumulated cases. More than 16,000 have died as a consequence of AIDS.

Objective:

The objective of this project is to stop the expansion of the epidemic of HIV/AIDS through the amplification of educational programs and activities directed to the groups who are at highest risk of HIV/AIDS infection; to increase knowledge about HIV/AIDS in the population in general; and to strengthen the institutional capacity to ensure the effectiveness and sustainability of the effort. An integral part of the program is for young people to explore and learn about cultures that are foreign to them.

We will implement advertising on the radio, TV, newspapers, Internet… using all forms of communicative media both written and audio-visual in order to education the populace about sexual education, in particular about HIV/AIDS and their prevention. At the same time, we will implement national and international exchanges among elementary, high school, and university students.

Communication:

Publicity:

Publicity Campaign for HIV/AIDS Crossing Borders Campaign (Dominican Republic and Republic of Haiti) In our publicity campaign about HIV/AIDS, we will implement the most efficient means available so as to achieve the best results in our fight against HIV/AIDS. Among other publicity ideas, we will organize a cross-borders march, where Young people from the Dominican Republic, the Republic of Haiti, Puerto Rico, and other Caribbean countries, including those those from both private and public institutions, schools, universities and colleges, and other institutions will march, leaving from the Capital of the Dominican Republic and crossing the border into the Republic of Haiti (province of Dajabon), where we will meet with invited specialists both national and international, who will lead educational activities on the topic of HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention.

Publicity mediums: