CHILD EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE DREAMS LIKE PROGRAM
The organization is working with Institute of Human Virology Nigeria to implement the DREAMS (Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored and Safe) program aimed at reducing the rates of HIV among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in three Local Government of Nasarawa State of Nigeria; Keffi, Nasarawa and Karu LGAs. The program started in the year 2020 as a plot scheme in Laminga community of Nasarawa LGA with in-school adolescent girls of GSS Laminga where the organization trained 50 adolescent girls and empowered them to be facilitators. However, these girls were able to mobilized and trained at least 98 young adolescent girls in their community. The program was later expanded to Keffi LGA and Karu LGA and was able to impact positively on the lives of the girls having over 72 young girls trained in different communities who as well trained their peers. In 2021 and 2022 the program was able to reached 33 and 39 young girls in the said LGAs and so far, the girls have trained over 66 girls on HIV prevention, life skills, DREAMS services including Violence Prevention and Economic Strengthening.
The DREAMS partnership recognizes the need to address the individual health needs of AGYW as well as other critical socio-behavioral determinants, in support of meeting the Sustainable Development Goal of ending AIDS by 2030. The DREAMS core package aims to:
- Empower adolescent girls and young women and reduce HIV risk through youth-friendly reproductive health care and social asset building;
- Mobilize communities for change with school- and community-based HIV and violence prevention;
- Reduce HIV risk of sex partners through referrals to complementary PEPFAR programming, including HIV testing, treatment, and voluntary medical male circumcision; and
- Strengthen families with social protection (education subsidies, combination socio-economic approaches) and parent/caregiver programs.
Adolescent DREAMS Like Champions facilitating Live skills during DREAMS program at Keffi LGA.
DREAMS LIKE IN SCHOOL GIRLS OF KEFFI LGA OF NASARAWA STATE
The adolescent girls playing games during PSS