Faith-based organizations have been delivering HIV services in the countries most affected by HIV since the start of the epidemic. How to strengthen collaboration on HIV services for migrants and refugees was the subject of a recent workshop organized by the World Council of Churches, UNAIDS and partners.
Wangari Tharao, the Director of Research and Programs at Women’s Health in Women’s Hands, migrated from Kenya to Canada at a time when the HIV epidemic was beginning to take hold across Africa. She knows only too well from personal experience the many challenges that migrants face, particularly in relation to health care. Language barriers, poor continuity of care, a lack of health insurance, no social protection and a lack of migrant-inclusive health policies all affect the health and safety of migrants as they seek to settle in new countries and communities.
When she left Kenya, stigma and discrimination around HIV was rife. Today, Ms Tharao says that stigma around HIV is the same. “As migrants we deal with HIV in silence, we are very fearful about stigma and discrimination and are reluctant to enter health-care settings. It is important to think about how to deliver services and how to overcome the challenges faced by populations on the move,” she said.
“We need to understand the life and journey of a migrant from a global perspective and from an individual level in order to understand the challenges they face. Legal status, documentation, proof of identity must never be reasons for denial of health and well-being,” said Tim Martineau, UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director, Programme, a.i.
Although the faith sector has played an important role in the response to HIV, religious beliefs and practices have sometimes been used to justify judgemental attitudes, resulting in stigma and discrimination.
“As faith communities, we can and must do more to support migrants and refugees: to protect them from HIV and tuberculosis; to promote access to health care and prevention; and to reduce stigma, discrimination and violence,” said Olav Fykse Tveit, General-Secretary of the World Council of Churches.
The workshop showcased many examples of faith-based organizations providing services to welcome, protect, integrate and promote the rights of migrants, refugees and other people on the move. Networks provided by mosques, churches and faith communities can form the first entry point of a refugee, migrant or displaced person into a new society.
“People trust faith groups and we can build on that to deliver community outreach, disseminate HIV prevention messages and provide HIV treatment and care services,” said Michael P. Grillo, Director for the Military International HIV Training Program for the United States Department of Defense HIV Prevention Program.
During the workshop, which was held in Geneva, Switzerland, on 20 and 21 February, the participants identified the key elements of a road map to strengthen the engagement of faith-based organizations and expand their role in the response to HIV and in providing services for migrants and refugees. It will build on commitments in the 2016 United Nations Political Declaration on Ending AIDS and the 2018 United Nations Political Declaration on Tuberculosis, while supporting the Global Compact for Migration’s commitments related to the right to health.
