What is the future of Behaviour
Change?
Some Views on Behaviour Change
Interventions in African Communities
How would you rate the performance of current
HIV related behaviour change interventions ?
 Above average
 Average
 Below average
No Future Without Behaviour Change!
Myth # 3. Behavioural interventions don’t work, we can
only rely on biomedical prevention
“What we have to remember is that even treatment is a
behavioural intervention with its strong emphasis on
compliance. We should remember that for example PrEP
only works when you take it!’”
Peter Piot: 10 Myths about the AIDS Response
http://www.aidsalliance.org/NewsDetails.aspx?Id=291690
Two Specific Challenges for the Future
•
How do we bring about behaviour
change?
•
How do we challenge community
norms that are barriers to
behaviour change?
1. Condoms
Issues with condoms (HI Workers’
Perspective)
Issues with condoms (Community
Perspective)
“Old Product- Same Old Message-Same
Old Packaging”
Clients cannot see relevance of condoms in
their relationships
“What’s the evidence that it is an effective
intervention tool for African
communities?”
Negotiating condom use can be difficult
Messages might not be compatible with
the context
Access can be a problem for some people
Assumptions that men can use condoms
Being asked to use condoms all of a
sudden when in a long term relationship
where they haven’t been using condoms
“Measuring Impact of condom distribution
programmes can be difficult”
Faith guidance might not encourage
condom use
Workers not equipped to discuss how
clients can negotiate condom use with
their partners
Interventions promoting condom use seen
as “promoting promiscuity’
Campaign Advisory Group Minutes
Questions on condoms
• How do we respond better to community
concerns on condoms and involving the
community to come up with solutions?
• How to move beyond the ‘protection’ message
approach?
• Improving access to condoms:
» internet-based assessment and ordering
systems (FITS ME)?
» Better condom supplies for outreach
workers?
• Better planning and monitoring and evaluation?
2. Challenging Social Norms
• Community Champions: To change the tide on
narratives on what is considered ‘normal’
• Community Segmentation: norms in one
African community are not necessarily the
norm to all African communities.
• Better community mobilisation: More
community involvement and representation at
policy, commissioning and delivery levels.
To consider…
As we go forward we face an environment with;
• Limited resources
• Technological advancements
•
•
•
•
New testing technologies
More advanced testing technologies
Improvements to treatment
Better communications technologies
Going forward
• Behaviour change will continue an essential
part of the response to HIV
• How do we innovate in promoting ‘old
products’ such as condoms?
• How do we improve how we engage African
communities so that they are and feel as part
of the response?
• How we make use of new technologies to
encourage behaviour change?
Thank You!
Takudzwa Mukiwa
Takudzwa.mukiwa@tht.org.uk
@musarinya