CARE is working in India, Bangladesh and Nepal to reduce the risk of HIV in groups of people who travel between the countries looking for work.
Due to poverty, high unemployment, political instability, and differential economic opportunities across the border in India, travelling there is often necessary for the economic survival of families in both urban and rural communities of Nepal and Bangladesh. This growing cross-border movement has increased peoples vulnerability to HIV and AIDS.
14.4% of the world’s people living with HIV and AIDS live in Asia. Overall HIV is low in Bangladesh and Nepal, but there is a growing concern that people who travel to India to find work are forming a bridge back.
Those who travel from home for work are particularly vulnerable to HIV and AIDS because many of them are illiterate and lack basic information on HIV and also because of the denial, stigma and discrimination which surrounds the issue.
Women migrant workers can be particularly vulnerable to HIV. Many are employed in unskilled jobs within the manufacturing, domestic service or entertainment industries, often without legal status and little access to health services. They are often susceptible to exploitation and/or physical and sexual violence, sometimes by their employer.
Women left behind by their spouse, faced with the same economic challenges that contributed to their husbands’ migration, may be forced to exchange sex for food or money. They may also be at risk if their husbands return infected with HIV.
The project will increase access to prevention and treatment services; strengthen capacity of civil society, government institutions and policy makers to address the needs of mobile populations.
CARE is helping people to participate in educational activities and ensuring they are able to access basic HIV and AIDS related services such as voluntary counselling and testing. CARE is also helping people to access social services to improve their economic security.
This five year initiative is funded by the Big Lottery Fund, the largest distributor of National Lottery good cause funding in the United Kingdom.
