School system is failing HIV-positive pupils

THE educational needs of HIV-positive children in Namibia are not being met, and this may signal wider systemic problems in the education sector, says a recent Unesco study.

According to the study, titled ‘Supporting The Educational Needs Of HIV-Positive Learners: Lessons From Namibia And Tanzania’, the existing problems in the education sector are being worsened by HIV and AIDS, and the sector is experiencing great difficulty in meeting its obligations to pupils in general, and HIV-positive pupils in particular.
In Namibia, in the study highlights ‘failures to make pupils (including HIV-positive children) aware of their rights; failures to facilitate antiretroviral therapy or support adherence; non-consensual disclosure of pupils’ HIV status by teachers; lack of training and capacity-building for teachers and school counsellors; and failures to develop appropriate curricula to provide requisite knowledge and understanding of HIV and AIDS’ as major problems in the education sector’s response.
In addition, while the educations sector’s HIV-AIDS policy is generally considered strong, a lack of leadership and capacity in the HIV and AIDS Management Unit (HAMU), coupled with a lack of co-ordination between sectors and service providers, is seen to be hampering efforts in this regard.
Stigma and discrimination stood out as the most pervasive theme in the research findings for both Namibia and Tanzania, with all HIV-positive pupils interviewed saying that it’s better not to disclose their HIV status.
‘These fears are the consequence of intolerant attitudes in the school and even the home, severe peer pressure, and the absence of responsive measures or support from school staff and the education sector as a whole,’ the study found.
Poverty increased the level of hardship for HIV-positive and other vulnerable children in rural settings, with a direct link to school dropouts and hunger and adversely affecting the response of children on antiretroviral therapy.
The study also reveals that at the school level, the response to the HIV-AIDS pandemic is one of denial. This is accompanied by a lack of communication about sex and reproductive health, with these subjects being treated ‘flippantly,’ says the report.
A number of recommendations are made, with the key focus being on improving the delivery of quality education for all.
The report states that while reductions in school fees and the expansion of feeding schemes for orphans and vulnerable children suggest that there have been some improvements in the response to HIV-AIDS, the next step should be recognition of the ground-level realities and the urgent implementation of programmes to deal with these realities.