[A report from the XVI International AIDS Conference held in Toronto, Canada, from 13 - 18 August 2006]

During the recent IAC children were often highlighted as the 'missing face of the AIDS pandemic.' As activists, scientists and medical practitioners push for prevention, care and access to treatment rarely do they mention that children are equally affected and infected.

The XVI International AIDS Conference in Toronto clearly illustrated that the children's agenda is yet to take root.  But even more worrying is that within that forgotten group of children, gender imbalance and discrimination still dominate.  A young girl living with HIV ranks lowest on the ladder.  If she is from Africa, her situation is frequently made worse by cultural beliefs and traditions.

The girl child is the first to drop out of school to take care of a sick parent.  She could be plucked out of school to be married off, sometimes to a man old enough to be her grandfather. Worst still, she could be unwittingly engaged to a partner living with HIV.  If not already infected, widely accepted customs and traditions allow him to sleep around and bring the virus back to his wife.  If she is lucky to escape this, she may end up being the victim of rape by an infected man.

An even more worrying trend in high HIV prevalence countries in Africa is the ridiculous and outrageous myth that sleeping with a virgin girl cures AIDS.  An increasing number of girls, some as young as one year are being infected through this atrocious behaviour.  In many children-headed households in AIDS ravaged countries of sub-Saharan Africa, girls are left particularly vulnerable to all kinds of abuse and mistreatment.

Betty Makoni, of the Girl Child Network, estimates that there are 40,000 cases of sexual abuse of young girls in Zimbabwe alone.  Her organisation is at the forefront of empowering girls to realise their rights.  Her argument is that girls' issues should not be bunched together with those of women or other children, but should be dealt with as a distinct group that need special attention and support.  This is particularly important in the presence of HIV and AIDS which is taking an inordinate toll on African girls.  Through their Girl Child Club, the organisation has become the voice young girls who can now speak out on sensitive issues like rape, forced marriages, HIV and AIDS and pre-marital sex, and communicate their plight in an effective manner.

Because of the complexity of the problems affecting girls in the face of AIDS, innovative, community-initiated and comprehensive measures are needed that can protect girls and ensure that they remain in school and protected from male predators.  The frequently chanted mantra of 'Abstinence, Being faithful and using a Condom' is not as simple as ABC.  Girls have little choice even if they want to be faithful, abstain or ensure that men use condoms.

According to Brenda Siajunza of the Law and Development Association (LADA) of Zambia, involving and engaging girls in programme measures is key to successful implementation.  At a pre-conference symposium titled 'Envisioning the Future', she presented the Paralegal Kids Programme that her organization has developed to fight for the rights of the girl child in Zambia.

The most striking aspect of the programme is the central role that the kids themselves play in determining their destiny.  The children themselves form the Kids Paralegal Club, where they are sensitised and are able to go back to their schools to make other pupils aware of their legal rights.  The children themselves are now in the forefront of reporting abuse and early marriage cases to the authorities and many have become powerful members of civil society.

These innovative initiatives that are seen to be working in Zimbabwe and Zambia should be encouraged, strengthened and fine-tuned in other African countries facing similar problems.  Then perhaps our African girl children will be free to grow up in a safe and supportive environment.

Timothy Mbugua
Email: tkmbugua@yahoo.com

[Mod: This contribution was originally distributed on the Children-IAC2006 eForum, a temporary network focused Children and AIDS at the 16th International AIDS Conference in 2006. To join, send a blank email to: Children-IAC2006@eforums.healthdev.org]
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