Marseille 2007
| Abstract #93 - Junior Farmer Field and Life Schools as a Mitigation Tool in HIV/AIDS: a Pilot Study in Mozambique | ||||
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Session: 6.90: Posters A (Poster) on Monday in Chaired by Authors: Presenting Author: Dr Tanja Mueller - University of Manchester, United Kingdom |
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| Additional Authors: Dr Tanja R. Mueller, | ||||
| Aim: Most of those affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic in the rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa owe big parts of their livelihood security to (smallholder) agriculture activities. In due course, the pandemic has been shown to affect all aspects of the rural economy in high prevalence countries. In turn, agriculture in a broad sense is bound to have a special role in mitigating the pandemics impact. The latter is of particular importance in relation to Youth, as one of the most serious consequences of the AIDS pandemic is the growing number of AIDS orphans. As one response to this crisis, Junior Farmer Field and Life Schools (JFFLS) have been developed under the guidance of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in order to teach orphans and vulnerable children aged 12 to 18 years agricultural and life skills, but also foster self-esteem and a new understanding of gender roles. The latter is of particular relevance as it is now widely agreed that to reverse the course of the AIDS pandemic and mitigate its impact, gender transformative policies are a prerequisite, as the pandemic thrives in environments characterised by unequal gender relations. JFFLSs have been piloted in Mozambique since 2003 and to date expanded to Kenya, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe. This pilot research project will therefore focus on Mozambique, the setting with the longest history in JFFLSs. It will evaluate JFFLSs from the perspective of its participants with the main objective to understand if and how JFFLSs succeed in their double objectives of on the one hand providing opportunities for future livelihood security based on agricultural knowledge and entrepreneurial skills, on the other hand instituting gender equal attitudes in agriculture and general self esteem. | ||||
| Method / Issue: The paper is based on qualitative research and observation data to be collected during a one month stay in the Chimoio area of northern Mozambique during April/May 2007. At the centre will be focus group discussions as well as open-ended individual interviews to be held with JFFLS-participants in three different settings. In addition to those interviews with JFFLS-participants, key informant interviews will be conducted with international and local staff involved in the project. Those will help to facilitate data triangulation and embed the analysis of findings into the overall context and objectives of the JFFLS approach. | ||||
| Results / Comments: Results will be discussed with a focus on the following questions: a) Has the opportunity to attend a JFFLS given participants a different outlook for their future? What are their long term ambitions and aspirations, and how confident are they those can be achieved? b) What types of knowledge and what skills acquired in a JFFLS-setting have been the most important to them and why? c) What is participants understanding of how men and women/boys and girls should work together in agriculture as well as in the household setting? What should the rights and obligations of women and men/girls and boys be in both contexts? | ||||
| Discussion: More broadly, it will be discussed if, and in what way, mitigation tools such as JFFLS can potentially alter some of the negative impacts of the AIDS pandemic. | ||||
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