National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day: A Story of Leadership in HIV Education
A key part of TeachAids’ approach and methodology is centered on developing sustainable and impactful solutions through extensive contextual research and local stakeholder engagement. The interventions are carefully co-designed with local communities and customized to fit the cultural contexts and nuances. After co-development, and through deeply valued partnerships, the TeachAids content is transferred to the target communities they were designed to serve. As we mark National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day, we invite you to explore a compelling example of this approach in action.
Lila Pavey was living and working in Botswana at the Ministry of Education and Skills Development when she stumbled upon an article about the novelty of the TeachAids HIV software. As the driving force behind the implementation of the nation’s HIV peer education initiatives, she reached out to Dr. Piya Sorcar, the founder of TeachAids. Their encounter sparked a profound connection, uniting kindred spirits with a shared passion. A series of serendipitous meetings and resonant dialogues led to dedicated volunteers and staff rallying together, generously contributing their time, expertise, and resources. This collective effort culminated in the collaborative creation of the Botswana localized versions of TeachAids content in Setswana and English language.
What was particularly special to Lila was the collaborative nature of the TeachAids product development process. “Children and youth were involved at a grassroots level in making and developing a tool that was for them and with them. That spirit of co-creation in developing a Botswana-specific, unique product, and to also have government support and funders involved across the board made it such a special project.” The local momentum of this effort brought together a confluence of key stakeholders throughout the nation. “We were very fortunate to have endorsement from the former president of the country, Festus Mogae (featured in the image above), who was also a global champion for HIV work [and the way he brought] ARV treatment to the country”.
TeachAids employs a meticulously crafted design process rooted in evidence, which intricately considers various facets of communication. From language nuances and dialects to the selection of colors and background imagery, every element is carefully curated to strike a chord with young audiences while maintaining the utmost accuracy in information dissemination. Lila elaborates, “Having youth participate in the way the characters looked and what went into the background pictures, to getting involved in the back translation in their own language, and hearing the voices of local celebrity pop artists who donated their voices to characters – it generated an enthusiasm where people paid attention. There was lots of excitement in creating this concept that had ownership from the youth and buy-in from the start was important to [capture their] attention.”
Lila highlights that the TeachAids HIV education was implemented at a pivotal moment in Botswana’s history marked by a palpable sense of HIV fatigue stemming from the pervasive nature of repetitive and redundant messaging campaigns. “The TeachAids animations were something new, vibrant and catchy. ” Co-creating an original, national-specific program was hugely gratifying to those involved in the project. “I still remember the look on kids’ faces, working with the artists who did voice recordings for the characters – the pride in developing content in their own language and being able to see themselves and their youth and giving back [made it a] meaningful, purpose-fueled project, especially for people who had known someone impacted by HIV whether directly or indirectly. So many people connected to it and I felt very proud to be a part of that work” she said. The country named June 15th, their “National TeachAids Day”.
On this auspicious occasion, TeachAids extends heartfelt gratitude to local leaders such as Lila Pavey, whose exemplary leadership, unwavering commitment, and boundless passion have illuminated the path toward building stronger, more vibrant communities.