A SALT revolution in Guyana

Partner: UNAIDS Guyana

The Constellation and UNAIDS have built the capacity of various actors in the fight against HIV in Guyana to facilitate the AIDS Competence Process. These actors are religious leaders, members of the joined UN team, PEPFAR programme, Adolescents living with HIV, health staff , services in uniform, organizations of civil society representing sexual minorities.

Constellation coaches visited the team twice in 2010, once in February and once in September. They also accompanied the team throughout the Blended Learning course which enabled two multi-organizational facilitation teams to become competent in the AIDS Competence process.

The first learning event in February was a great success. Thirty-three potential facilitators have learned and practiced the steps of the AIDS Competence process in their context. At the workshop, parti cipants facilitated AIDS competence self-assessments in 9 ‘working communities’, including their own. Each organization has developed its action plan based on their strengths.

During the visit in September, the coaches facilitated a retreat of the Joint UN Team on AIDS and presented the Community Life Competence Process. They also supported the local group of facilitators and officially certified those who have experience in all stages of the process.

The coaches certified 7 facilitators and others will be in the coming months. A group of 17 individuals are actively spreading Community Life Competence in all sectors of the country. 

“People in the Faith coalition opened up honestly and in ways we haven’t seen before. Planning action is now easy because we’ve done our self-assessment” said Nicole Cole, Guyana Faith Coalition on HIV/AIDS.

Here is what the UNAIDS Country Coordinator in Guyana says:

Facilitating communities to self-identify their own competencies towards solving their own problems, and supporting the development of intrinsically driven action, is the most cost-effective, efficient and sustainable way that we must work, as development partners in any country. 
My message to colleagues UCCs is:
  “Make UNAIDS’ support to the process of Community Life Competence the number one priority in your Country Office’s and Joint UN Team on AIDS’ way of work. Be this within the UN system itself or any group, institution or agency that could be qualified as a ‘community.’ “

Download the report of the first event (Feb 2010)
Download the report of the second event (Sep 2010)

The Constellation and UNAIDS signed a Memorandum of Understanding in June 2010 "to strengthen and broaden community responses to HIV" globally.