5 May 2008 – The second day of the Second Eastern European and Central AIDS Conference was centered around the theme “Scale Up Multisectoral Prevention.” Special attention was paid to close cooperation between NGOs and governmental organizations, and in multisectoral discussions about various aspects related to HIV in the region, over 700 participants representing NGOs, people living with HIV, as well as representatives from governments, international organizations, the arts and various religious congregations took part.

NGOs play an important role in providing direct support for communities living with HIV and at-risk groups, and are among the most effective tools for dealing with social perceptions related to HIV and other related issues. The future role of NGOs in the Russian Federation is of special interest in light of expected reductions in support from the Global Fund for various programs in Russia as the country moves from a recipient of aid to a donor. This topic was at the center of the discussion during the extraordinary panel session with Special Presidential Aid Igor Shuvalov and all co-chairs of the conference.

The importance of active_en involvement of NGOs in the region was highlighted by participants who shared their positive experiences with colleagues from different countries. In Uzbekistan, for instance, one NGO initiated and implemented several vitally important projects like “Children’s Center Lastochka” for youth living with HIV, or “Friendly Cabinet,” which provides consultation for street youth in official medical institutions. “In Lastochka we not only help kids living with HIV, but also their parents, who are often in desperate need of support and advice,” said Tursunoy Usmanova, the head of a project called “Non-medical care and support to HIV-positive children and their family members.”

At the conference site, the open dialogue space “Besedka,” organized by a number of NGOs, became the space for informal discussions among people living with HIV in the region. Topics raised and not covered by official conference sessions included vital topics such as substitution therapy, harm reduction programs, the reproductive rights of people living with HIV and HIV in prisons. “Besedka is important because it involves people who really deal with the problem in their own lives. In addition to that, Besedka opens new opportunities for artistic expression through the unique exhibition by the Estonian network of people living with HIV called ‘We are people’ created by Victoria Melnikova,” stated Anastasia Kamlyk, UNDP Besedka Coordinator.

Many of the issues discussed, such as stigma against people living with HIV, will be impossible to solve without direct, personal involvement. Director of the charity fund “Otchiy Dom,” husband of a wife living with HIV and father of nine adopted kids, two of which also living with HIV, Maxim Boreykin knows about the importance of being active_enly involved in social work in your neighborhood. Teachers, doctors, headmasters and many others do not have sufficient knowledge about the problem and frequently avoid dealing with the issue. “The conference is a chance to share the real experience of how to solve problems that go hand in hand with HIV. It is an opportunity to openly state that HIV should not be the internal problem of a single family,” Maxim said.

Peter Piot’s remarks, made during informal discussions with representatives of NGOs and civil society, that “dealing with HIV is about social change,” represented the core theme of many discussions held by other conference participants on the second day of the three day event.

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