The programme organisers believe travel increases opportunities to have sexual relationships with multiple partners, thus creating an environment that is conducive to the transmission of HIV/AIDS among truck drivers and commercial sex workers in the countries along the Abidjan-Lagos corridor. The objective of the project is to increase access to prevention services related to sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV/AIDS, and to serve presently underserved, vulnerable groups, particularly migrants and local populations living in the border towns.

The Corridor Project’s STI/HIV/AIDS Strategy aims to provide a common behaviour change communication framework for the five project countries to enable the various players involved (public sector and civil society partners, community groups, technical assistance partners, etc.) to meet the HIV/AIDS related needs of border communities and mobile populations through a coherent, coordinated, and harmonised approach.

The project is made up of three components namely: HIV/AIDS prevention services for the target populations; treatment and care and support for people living with HIV/AIDS; coordination of the project, capacity building and development of policies.

The project is expected to:

• increase access to HIV prevention and care services to the most vulnerable populations
• strengthen cross-country cooperation and coordination of HIV/AIDS activities
• contribute to the overall reduction of HIV/AIDS transmission, socio-economic impact and related deaths member countries with particular emphasis on transport sector workers
• contribute to the improvement of flow of commercial and passenger traffic along the Corridor by facilitating the implementation of regulations designed to speed up traffic at border crossings.

The project has included a wide range of activities.


The Love Life mobile caravan - to mobilise and sensitise people along the Abidjan-Lagos corridor. The Caravan is used to support the initiative’s activities and increase the visibility of the project. The caravan hopes to:

• Increase the visibility of the project by making it better known to the beneficiary populations living along the Corridor.
• Reinforce the activities of awareness for the acceptance of the reality of HIV/AIDS and the consciousness of the risk by the populations of Abidjan-Lagos Corridor.
• Increase the local participation in the activities of prevention, treatment care and support services for HIV/AIDS.
• Advocate for the support of political, administrative, religious and customary authorities.
• Give the borders Committees means and support for effective BCC action.
• Proceed with a mini launching of the activities of the project in each country.
• Reinforce the collaboration with :
  
  • National institutions
  • International institutions
  • Civil society Organisations
  • Trade / Labour Unions

  Private sector

Training - in order to increase skills and awareness training activities around HIV/AIDS and human rights workshops have been designed and implemented for law enforcement agents, transport owners, drivers and road user unions and executives of transport departments.


Tools and Materials - in order to help each of the countries to coordinate their efforts, tools and materials are being developed to guide the process. A monitoring and evaluation handbook was designed to be an easy reference manual to structure the procedures, tools, and information needed to implement the operational programme. As well, reports from each activity – training, meetings, etc, are made available for information sharing.

HIV/AIDS

The HIV prevalence rate for commercial sex workers was in Cote d'Ivoire, 84% in Abidjan in 1993, and at 40% in Accra/Tema in Ghana in 1991. This rate was at 80% in Togo, in 1992, in Lome, about 54% in Cotonou in Benin in 1996, and in Nigeria in 1993 the prevalence was at 30% in Lagos.