APHIA II Eastern lands in Ishiara, beating the drums against HIV
February 2007
CREDITS: Story and photos by the APHIA II Eastern Results 2 Team
in Kenya. The team includes Juma Mwatsefu, Daniel Were and Noni Mumba.
 Winding down
through the rusty and dusty roads in between the small hills is Ishiara, a town
in the Eastern Province of Kenya popularly known for hosting
the biggest goat market in the region. The journey to Ishiara is almost excruciating, with a lot of dust
and a very bumpy ride. After a one-hour ride through this dusty road, one is welcomed here in this oasis
of juicy goat ribs.
It is deep here in the rural jungle that the AIDS, Population and Health Integrated
Assistance Program (APHIA II Eastern / A2E) is meeting milestones in ensuring the
community has the health care it desperately needs.
On this particular Tuesday afternoon, the crowd quickly gathers on the open space next
to the market, aroused by the drum beats that are reminiscent of the famous Chuka dancers. Within a
few minutes, about 200 people are gathered here, attracted by the sweet drumming from the Dynamic
youth group based here in Ishiara. The crowd is so excited and eager to see the unfolding events.
With a moment's notice, the drama group began performing a skit laden with thematic issues on HIV,
the focus for this particular day being abstinence.
The play features two young people, a boy and a girl, who are under pressure to engage
in premarital sex. Many of the young people in the audience are seen to be very excited and touched
by the play, which relates to their everyday lives. As the drama proceeds, the conflict in the play
builds up to the point that it poses a dilemma to the audience on what the two should do.
Provoked by the drama presentation, the audience gets heated up
as they quickly take sides—some advocating for the two to engage in sex and others advocating against. This leads to a
heated discussion among the community members, with each defending their opinions. As the community
airs their different points of view, Peter Mwaniki, the facilitator, keeps on engaging the crowd deeper
into the discussion. As the discussion continues, key issues keep unfolding, highlighting gaps that
the facilitator responds to with referrals for services such as condoms and VCT.
 The rich discussion that lasts for about 45 minutes is so captivating that many of
the community members are glued to the spot for the entire period. As they are so engrossed, few
members of the audience noticed the arrival of the bigger A2E team including Dr. Ronald Magarick of
Jhpiego, as well as Dr. William Obwaka (Deputy Project Director), Juma Mwatsefu (BCC Advisor) and Triza
Mwikali from the Embu A2E Office. Dr. Magarick could not resist this comment: "Very impressive. Programs
talk about community engagement...this is it. It's just fabulous."
As the discussion comes to an end, it is evident from some of the community members
that they are still yearning for more. Some could be heard asking when the next outreach will be.
Having wound up the outreach, a few young men can be seen hanging around the site, reluctant to leave
should there be more juicy discussions coming up. With only a few NURU comic books available, the small
crowd begins scrambling for the books, a sign of their quest for knowledge. In the process, there
is some pushing and shoving, with everybody wanting to get a copy of the limited number of IEC
materials. Daniel Were and Noni Mumba, members of the Results 2 Team, make a note to bring more IEC
materials during the next outreach. As this outreach comes to an end, it is indeed evident that
the day made a difference in someone’s life.
About Jhpiego
For nearly 40 years, Jhpiego, (pronounced "ja-pie-go"), has empowered front-line health
workers by designing and implementing simple, low-cost, hands-on solutions that
strengthen the delivery of health care services, following the
household-to-hospital continuum of care. We partner with community- to
national-level organizations to build sustainable, local capacity through
advocacy, policy and guidelines development, and quality and performance
improvement approaches.
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