| Last year we marked 25 years of a world with AIDS: 20 million people are dead and 40 million are living with HIV. Of those 40 million, 25 million are Commonwealth citizens.
Young people (15-24 years) account for half of all new HIV infections worldwide - more than 6,000 become infected with HIV every day. There is an urgent need to raise the awareness of young people about the dangers of HIV and AIDS.
The objective of this questionnaire was to encourage youth to reflect on the subject and have a real say about how future HIV and AIDS prevention work in the Commonwealth can be more targeted and effective. Their views and perceptions on HIV prevention and sexual transmission will be valuable towards shaping our strategies and interventions and actually benefiting young people.
This YoVoice questionnaire was completed by young people from across the Commonwealth in the period leading to the Commonwealth People’s Forum (CPF) and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kampala, Uganda 2007. The results will be disseminated by the Commonwealth Foundation at the HIV and AIDS workshop at the Commonwealth People’s Forum, after which a report will be posted on the Commonwealth Foundation web site (www.commonwealthfoundation.com). |
METHODS:
The Online Questionnaire may be viewed at
http://www.yocomm.com/CWFHIV/CHOGM_Questionnaire.asp and involved Software design incorporating Real Time questionnaire creation with Multiple Answer formats; Immediate Response capability; Automatic data analysis updated in Real Time ; Export statistics to other programmes for further reporting and analysis.
TARGET POPULATION:
Commonwealth Youth who have access to the Internet.
SURVEY DESIGN AND SAMPLING:
Sampling was predominantly via our partner network of youth and youth organisations, who emailed their counterparts in Commonwealth countries. We also carried out direct emails to Commonwealth Youth organizations in all Continents.
SURVEY IMPLEMENTATION:
01st August 2007 to 15th November 2007
DATA COLLECTION PERIOD:
Data was collected online over a 3 month period from August to November 2007. The data collected from this survey was stored in a secure folder, to safeguard privacy and confidentiality. The responses were collated and analysed using Yocomm Software tools, and a report will subsequently be posted on the Commonwealth Foundation website.
(www.commonwealthfoundation.com)
DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS:
45% of the respondents were female; the average (mean) age of respondents was 23; the median age was 22; the respondents were pan-Commonwealth. |
| This YOVOICE Pan-Commonwealth online survey on youth perceptions on HIV and AIDS in the Commonwealth has been a participatory and transparent initiative, involving a democratisation process at youth level. The project, in partnership with the Commonwealth Foundation, Yocomm.com and the Mackwoods Research Foundation has provided a much needed avenue to recognise youth views on Commonwealth issues, and this initiative has succeeded in mobilizing youth around the Commonwealth, making them actors and not merely spectators.
It also demonstrates how ICT can rein in support from youth resources to youth capable of articulating critical issues and empower them as ambassadors for the Commonwealth.
The results were not biased in favour of prioritising youth advocacy alone, probably the most significant index of the maturity of the youth respondents. The inputs made were balanced, and would be eminently suitable for inclusion in the draft communiqué, for CHOGM 2007.
YOVOICE results recommend that Commonwealth governments should demonstrate greater political leadership, commitment and engagement towards the achievement of Millennium Development Goal 6/Target 7; prioritize universal access to affordable anti-retrovirals, treatment and care; implement compulsory HIV and AIDS education and awareness in the school curriculum; provide greater access to condoms and greater preventative education measures at youth level; encourage cooperation and collaborative partnerships between Commonwealth member states, to develop a coordinated Commonwealth response, via a dynamic CHOGM mandate.
We recommend that this important outreach E-tool (YOVOICE) is part of a global strategy to raise awareness amongst Commonwealth Heads of Governments, of the needs of Commonwealth youth, and serves as a reference point on youth. This can now assist Commonwealth Heads Of Governments in devising appropriate strategies for action to address issues that impact on the daily lives of Commonwealth youth who are, after all, the future of the Commonwealth. |
