Bakassi Women Get Lessons On Mother-To-Child HIV Transmission

/By Macdonald Ayang Okumb/

     Some 44 women and girls drawn from around the Bakassi peninsular have been trained on prevention methods of the mother to child, MTCT, means of transmission of HIV.

Reach Out CMR CEO

     The workshop participants were trained recently by a team of officials from a Buea-based civil society organisation dealing with women and health issues, Reach Out Cameroon.

     This falls within the framework of a project funded by the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, PEPFAR, dubbed “engaging women and girls to bridge the gap of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV MTCT in Bakassi, South West Region-Cameroon”. The project which shall span two years will be executed in two maritime councils of Idabato and Kombo-Itindi in Bakassi.

     Its worthy of note that two ‘communications for advocacy’ meetings took place on 28 and 29 June 2015 in Barracks and Idabato prior to the 3 days workshop which was held at Jabane.

     The workshop proper took place from 30 June to 2 July 2015 during which the 44 women, girls and health workers were trained on HIV & AIDS, MTCT, male participation in Anti-natal Clinic, ANC, as well as on family planning.

     After the training, the trainees would become peer mentors (community educators) and will be expected to carry out educative talks in their communities, home visits, loss-to-follow-up of pregnant women, HIV positive children, and submit a quarterly report of their activities to the project team.

     A community educator for the project, Mispa Awa, expressed joy and satisfaction as this, she sustained, will help stop stigmatisation and reduce home delivery within the communities, which would help in reducing the high rate of MTCT and thus the project attaining its objective.

     The Project Manager, Lundi-Anne Ngo Bibaa, explained that the project is timely as in 2014, 124 out of 684 pregnant women were seen at ANC and 25 of them tested positive, totaling 20.1%. This, she went on, indicates that the prevalence of MTCT is very high, thereby justifying why  Reach Out Cameroon came out with the project in order to reduce mother to child transmission of HIV.