“Equalize it: The Visually Impaired and HIV/AIDS Interventions”

For over thirty years of the global HIV pandemic, there had been so many programmes addressing HIV/AIDS prevention and control, yet many Disabled people especially the visually impaired persons are somehow left out in these interventions.  Recently, the Nigeria Association of the Blind which is saddled with the responsibility of addressing issues of blind and partially sighted persons begun to address HIV/AIDS issues among themselves.

As the world commemorate another World AIDS Day this year with the slogan ‘Getting to Zero’ a deep critical thinking is how to include the visually impaired in this laudable ambition as everybody is needed in Getting to Zero – new HIV infection, stigma and discrimination as well as HIV related death in Nigeria.

There are issues that present themselves when considering the inclusion of blind persons into mainstream HIV intervention.  The empowerment of visually impaired women with HIV knowledge and economic skills in order to achieve gender equity and reduce their social marginalization and risk to HIV/AIDS is important in the inclusion prospect.  They are more vulnerable to HIV so there is need to increase their knowledge on HIV and AIDS issues.

How do programmers fashion out ways on how HIV interventions and services can be made accessible for blind and partially sighted persons? What provisions are available in the state for sensitizing mainstream service providers on how they can adapt their programs in format accessible to blind and partially sighted persons?

The aforementioned issues would form the basis of discussions at this edition of the roundtable.  Designed as an interactive platform, the roundtable would bring together Journalists, People Living with HIV (PLWH), National Association of the Blind (NAB), representatives of civil society, policy makers and implementers, clinicians and other key stakeholders to discuss the ways towards ensuring the reduction of the incidence of HIV/AIDS amongst blind and partially sighted persons.  Speakers will also shed light on how to improve access to HIV/AIDS information as they speak on these various topics:

• “Equalize it: The Visually Impaired and HIV/AIDS Interventions – a call for more media advocacy” -Representative of JAAIDS

•  “Accessibility to information and services on HIV/AIDS for the Blind and Partially Sighted” by Lagos State AIDS Control Agency’s

• “Integrating Visually Impaired People into HIV/AIDS Intervention Programmes: Challenge and Prospects of Inclusion” by Representative of Nigeria Association of the Blind (NAB)

•  “HIV-related Stigma and Discrimination: Indifference of the society towards the plight of visually impaired Nigerians” by Representative of Nigeria Association of the Blind (NAB)