BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – AFTER four days of intense discussion and dialogue, the Ministry of Education’s HIV/AIDS Strategic Planning and Policy Development Workshop came to a close on Thursday (Jan. 22) afternoon.

In a brief closing ceremony, 32 representatives from the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, Youth and Labour, and persons from civil society and non governmental organisations received certificates of participation for four days well-spent.

The workshop was facilitated by Arlene Husbands and Connie Constantine of the Boston-based Education Development Centre. Participants were charged with developing a draft HIV/AIDS policy for the education sector that would fit into the framework of the broader national response to the epidemic.

Speaking on behalf of the participants, Michael Blake expressed their overall satisfaction at the finished product.

“We entered the workshop with predetermined goals and objectives and we have now built a model that defines those goals and the modus operandi to facilitate their achievement. Furthermore, we have defined activities to complement the completion of these goals and have set timelines for their implementation,” said Blake.

Permanent Secretary in the Education Ministry Osmond Petty stated his confidence that the newly-drafted policy was “non-discriminatory, gender sensitive and human-rights based”.

“It will take into account several pertinent issues related to HIV/AIDS, including access to treatment, priority on prevention, patients’ confidentiality, care and assistance, establishment of a support system, respect of rights, mitigation measures to reduce the risk of spread, measures to deal with incidences of persons who refuse to work with persons who have or are suspected of having HIV/AIDS, and adequate relevant training of educators,” outlined Petty.

He also disclosed that ministry officials would collaborate with the National Advisory Council on AIDS, the National AIDS Secretariat and the Nevis Coordinating AIDS Unit to align the development of the policy to existing public policy and regulatory framework for HIV/AIDS within the Federation.

The Permanent Secretary revealed his ministry’s expectation of receiving the completed policy by month’s end after those consultations had concluded. He further reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring the implementation of the policy’s programmes and initiatives, and assured that the plan would be included in the upcoming White Paper on Education Policy and Development.