PRA on HIV/AIDS Link workers scheme by APAC in Trichy

Mrs.Santhiya,Mrs.Percy Lal enlightens experts on Village Resource Map

Participatory Rapid Appraisal (PRA) in Link Workers scheme on HUIV/AIDS being implemented by APAC/SEVAI in Trichy district was done by grouping the community members into five different groups consisting of men self help groups, women self help groups, vulnerable groups, Village Health Committee and the red ribbon clubs. There are facilitators who sit with the people to analyze and prioritize their needs by using the PRA tools mentioned above. In PRA information is owned and shared by local people. Outsiders or facilitators go to village, Allur, but they facilitate rural people in collection, presentation and analysis of information by themselves. The tools used during PRA included pertaining to HIV/AIDS prevention, Building trust/climate setting,24hr activities, Historical timeline, Community (village) resource map,HIV/AIDS village mapping, Community needs assessment, Prioritizing problems e.g. preference ranking, Problem analysis matrix and Transect work. Mrs. Percy Lal, District Resource Person of the Project said “The Village Resource Map is a tool that helps us to learn about a community and its resource base. The primary concern is not to develop an accurate map but to get useful information about local perceptions of resources for the HIV/AIDS prevention, care and support. The participants develop the content of the map according to what is important to them. Mrs.Santhiya, State Project Coordinator of APAC-LWS said “The Village Resource Map is a good tool to begin with. It is easy and fun for the villagers to do. It helps initiate discussion among the community on HIV/AIDS and with the PRA team. All team members observe the mapping exercise because it provides an overall orientation to the features of the community and its resources. In our PRA, we would like to do this map with separate groups of men and women in the village. This is because women and men may use different resources. The women will map the resources they think are important. The men will map the resources they think are important. Maps may include roads, houses, buildings, bridges, etc water sites and sources; agricultural lands crop varieties and locations; soils, slopes, elevations; forest lands; grazing areas; shops, markets; health clinics, schools,; special places (sacred sites, cemeteries, bus stops, shrines, etc) and enabling places for HIV/AIDS Prevention and HIV/AIDS prevalence reduction sources”. This activity was carried out as a process of documentation of LWS Project achievement document process in Allur village near Trichy.-Govin