Education is known as the ‘social vaccine’ against HIV, but is itself threatened by the epidemic. How have education systems responded to HIV and AIDS? A report by the Global Campaign for Education based on research in 18 countries calls for bigger, better and more systematic efforts.

A complete primary education can halve the risk of HIV infection, but one in two African children either fails to enrol in primary school at all, or drops out before finishing. Teacher shortages, already severe in much of Africa and South Asia, are expected to worsen significantly in the wake of AIDS. Are education systems meeting these challenges?

The research in 18 Asian, African and Latin American countries found that only two countries have a coherent education sector AIDS strategy that is actually being implemented. HIV/AIDS strategic plans are often not implemented because they are developed in isolation from other policy and budgetary processes. The study also found that:

• Nearly all countries have developed an HIV/AIDS curriculum but in most cases implementation is hindered by a lack of adequate teacher training and left at the margins of the curriculum.
• Ministries of Education are not taking sufficient steps to ensure that HIV/AIDS infected and affected learners can stay in school and are ill-prepared to deal with the impact of the disease on teachers.
• The relationship between civil society and Ministries of Education differs greatly across countries, but there is an overall lack of partnership and cooperation.
• Non-governmental organisations have focused their efforts on providing HIV/AIDS education in schools but these have, at times, been misguided and fragmented.
• The blame does not rest only with national governments. The international donor community has also failed to deliver leadership and political commitment.

The report concludes that while the response so far is too little, it may not be too late. By acting together now, donors, governments and civil society can help young people to stay safe from AIDS, by:

• drawing up and implementing fully-funded national strategic plans on HIV/AIDS and education
• defining and defending the rights of HIV-positive children and education workers
• meeting the special educational needs of children affected by HIV/AIDS
• strengthening education management information systems to monitor the impact of the epidemic
• training teachers to teach about HIV/AIDS as part of a wider sexual and reproductive health framework
• ensuring that all children, especially the poorest and most marginalised, go to school.

This effort will require immediate major increases in aid and debt relief for affected countries and a more proactive response from civil society organisations seeking to influence HIV-related policies and plans of their governments.

Source(s):
‘Deadly Inertia. A Cross-Country Study of Educational Responses to HIV/AIDS’, Global Campaign for Education: Brussels, by Tania Boler and Anne Jellema, 2005 Full document.

Funded by: Canadian International Development Agency

id21 Research Highlight: 7 April 2006

Further Information:
Tania Boler
ActionAid International
Hamilyn House
MacDonald Road
London N19 5PG

Tel: +44 (0)207 561 7568
Contact the contributor: tania.boler@actionaid.org

Actionaid, UK

Other related links:
Global Campaign for Education

'Deadly silence: barriers to communicating HIV/AIDS in schools'

'From a distance: HIV interventions for out-of-school youth'

'Smarter and safer – education protects against HIV in rural Uganda'

'Pupil power – Ugandan students help to shape the AIDS education curriculum'

'Growing threat: HIV and adolescents in Ethiopia'

'A safe place? Tackling sexual violence in the education sector'