CENSUDI mainstreams HIV/AIDS workplace policy into its operations

Bolgatanga, (U/E), June 22, GNA - The Centre for Sustainable Development Initiatives (CENSUDI), a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) working in the Upper East Region has mainstreamed HIV/AIDS Workplace Policy into its operations. The NGO works in the area of providing women with the opportunity to acquire knowledge, skills and confidence necessary to fully contribute to the development process and to take charge of their lives.

Madam Francisca Issaka, Chief Executive Officer of CENSUDI, speaking to the Ghana News Agency after a two-day workshop organized for the board members, staff and community facilitating team of CENSUDI on HIV/AIDS said her outfit acknowledged the potential impact of HIV/AIDS on its staff and their families, project partners, project beneficiaries and project outcomes.

She said CENSUDI through workshops had been able to mainstream HIV/AIDS into all its projects and that facilitation of a mainstreaming process by staff, implementation partners, community facilitating team members and community representatives were all involved in the mainstreaming exercise.

Madam Issaka explained that the draft of the HIV/AIDS workplace policy by CENSUDI was developed based on the Universal Principles of Workplace Policy with specific guidance from the International Labour Organization (ILO) code and the Ghana AIDS Commission Workplace Policy and it represented the views of all workers.

She said it dealt with topics including education on causes and effects of HIV/AIDS, perception, recognition and reduction of personal risk, care and support to infected and affected staff, benefits and job security, stigmatization and discrimination.

Madam Issaka said CENSUDI had in place an HIV/AIDS Workplace Policy Implementation Committee to oversee the implementation of the policy as well as monitor the impact of the policy and recommend a review if necessary.

She said board members, staff and community facilitating team members had been taken through an intensive education on the subject. Madam Issaka said the staff of CENSUDI had unanimously selected December 1 every year to celebrate as CENSUDI AIDS DAY and that the day coincided with the World AIDS Day on which people living with the disease would also be invited to share their thoughts.

She said CENSUDI had decided to provide protective materials to staff on assignments that exposed them to blood and other body fluids in order to protect them from acquiring the disease.

She said plans were far advanced by CENSUDI to make available a list of Voluntary, Counselling and Testing (VCT) centres where staff members could go for testing and that an affected employee shall have job security until he or she could no longer work.

Madam Issaka urged the public not to discriminate against HIV/AIDS patients and that there was a network of more than 1,400 faith leaders in Africa including Christians, Moslems and Hindus infected by the disease and had taken upon themselves to fight against stigma and discrimination.

Dr Baggley Rachel, a Medical Doctor in charge of HIV/AIDS of Christian Aid, an NGO based in the UK, who was a facilitator at the workshop, stressed the need for people to go for VCT and indicated that it was very important to know one's health status to enable him to plan. Dr Rachel said she had worked in the field of HIV/AIDS since its outbreak and indicated that the disease was just like diabetes and hypertension and if well managed, an infected person could survive for a long time.

She appealed to people not to abandon those living with the disease and urged victims of rape to quickly report to the hospital to avoid the possibility of contracting the disease. 22 June 09