Using the power of soccer to fight HIV/AIDS

With a thin sigh of relief from  the containment measures of Covid-19,it was time to get into the normal football activities though under strict guidelines.The first football activity to roll out was ‘Make The Cut’a supplementary football based game that promotes and advocates for voluntary medical male circumcision targeting adolescent boys.Drawn from different communities around Nairobi with the urge and excitement of kicking the ball again, 30 teams of  adolescent boys with their boots picked from their hidden places and dusted off found their way to Maringo community football field for a one day football activities coiled with information and messages about HIV with the key focus being on promotion of voluntary medical male circumcision for the adolescent boys.During the one event,over 100 boys were referred for circumcision services both surgical and non-surgical to VAP’s health service providing partners:Edarp health centre and other neighboring health clinics.

Mental and Pyscho social Support

With the covid-19 fog still in the air, VAP’s mental and psychosocial department has been busy conducting periodical mental and psychosocial support sessions with different program groups. These programs are conducted in several ways including: group counselling and therapy, one-on-one therapy and via VAP’s hotline numbers that are provided to program participants, parents and the community. With majority of the vulnerable groups being girls and young women, and particularly those in the ‘Employment+Entrepreneurship’ project, part of the information shared out is to make participants have a sense of belonging through understanding which is achieved through sharing common experiences. Participants are instilled with hope as they benefit from each other on how to overcome trauma.