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First EHP HIV/AIDS Stakeholders Meeting

The first ever Eastern Highlands Provincial HIV/AIDS Stakeholder meeting was held on the 7th of May at the PNG Institute of Medical Research Adolf Sawari lecture theater.

The one day gathering saw approximately 150 people from various organizations come from all the eight districts of the province.

The meeting was organized by Save the Children Fund and supported by the Provincial Aids Council (PAC) and the National AIDS Council (NAC) and was aimed at identifying and recording all the organizations engaged in the Eastern Highlands Province’s response to the HIV and AIDS Epidemic.

The role of the PAC and DAC (District Aids Council) as mandated by NAC is to coordinate, promote and support the response to HIV in the province and districts.

One priority of PACS is to strengthen the network of organizations and individuals involved directly or indirectly in the HIV/AIDS activities.

The purpose of the meeting was
· to map organizations involved in the HIV and AIDS work in EHP according to activities and locations
· identify strengths and challenges to the provincial response according to activities and locations
· develop a database of resources dedicated to fighting HIV and AIDS in EHP
· strengthening networking among stakeholders combating HIV and AIDS in EHP
· And to clarify the roles of the National AIDS Council (NAC), the National Strategic Plan (NSP) and the EHP AIDS committee (PAC) in coordinating the National and Provincial Responses to HIV and AIDS.

During the second half of the meeting the participants got together in eight groups to answer questionnaires that were set up by the organizers, which were designed to help map out and learn more about all the HIV and AIDS related activities in the province and districts.

By mapping out and learning about the activities in the province and districts, PAC, DAC and stakeholders can identify gaps and overlaps in existing work, they can also identify areas for collaboration with other stakeholders and this would help guide the future HIV and AIDS activities.

It will also be a great way for PAC & DAC to get to know their stakeholders and what activities they are doing.
The results of the mapping exercise will also be used to guide PAC & DAC strategic and activity planning; in particular towards supporting and strengthening the capacity of their stakeholders.