Tuesday, 7 August 2018 (PANCAP Coordinating Unit, CARICOM Secretariat): The Pan-Caribbean Partnership against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP), with funding from the CARIFORUM 10th European Development Fund (EDF) Programme of Support for Wider Caribbean Cooperation, will host the Guyana National Faith Leaders Consultation in Georgetown, Guyana on the 9^TH  and 10^TH  August 2018.    

 The event will be hosted at the Guyana Marriott Hotel Georgetown; highlights will include a feature address by Hon. Dr Karen Cummings, MP, Minister within the Ministry of Public Health.

 The consultation is occurring two years ahead of the 2020 deadline for reaching the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) 90-90-90 Targets —90% of people living with HIV diagnosed, 90% of diagnosed people on treatment and 90% of those on treatment virally suppressed.

 The initiative forms part of a series of engagements with faith leaders in Guyana under the PANCAP Justice for All (JFA) programme. It will encompass the development of an action plan for advancing faith leaders’ implementation of key elements of the Justice for All programme. Participants will include 40 faith leaders from religious networks across Guyana.

The action plan will include the establishment of the main goals for an inter-religious faith leaders network in Guyana with emphasis on ending AIDS. It will also involve the identification of the lessons learned for ending AIDS from faith leaders’ engagements with People Living with HIV (PLHIV) and with other groups such as parliamentarians, youth leaders, civil society and members of church communities.

Participants will also propose solutions for resolving the challenges in developing a viable faith leaders network and will make specific recommendations to achieve the goals of the inter-religious – faith leaders network as well as identifying priorities and timelines for achieving the goals of the network.

In an invited comment, coordinator of the Consultation, Bishop Michael Perreira (Eccles Assembly of God – East Bank Demerara), encouraged faith leaders to partner with stakeholders to find common ground, respect differences, and work towards the establishment of a national faith leaders network.

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What is PANCAP?

PANCAP is a Caribbean regional partnership of governments, regional civil society organisations, regional institutions and organisations, bilateral and multilateral agencies and contributing donor partners which was established on 14 February 2001. PANCAP provides a structured and unified approach to the Caribbean’s response to the HIV epidemic, coordinates the response through the Caribbean Regional Strategic Framework on HIV and AIDS to maximise efficient use of resources and increase impact, mobilises resources and build capacity of partners.

• 10th European Development Fund (EDF) Programme of Support for Wider Caribbean Cooperation

Under the 10th (EDF) Programme of Support for Wider Caribbean Cooperation, PANCAP will strengthen coordination on human rights issues in keeping with the Justice For all Roadmap through the HIV and AIDS Thematic Task Force in CARIFORUM.

• CARIFORUM

CARIFORUM refers to the Grouping of Caribbean States which are signatories of the Georgetown Agreement establishing the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP). The ACP grouping is composed of 79 African, Caribbean and Pacific states.

CARIFORUM is the recipient of and manages the implementation of Caribbean Regional Indicative Programmes financed by the EDF and Caribbean regional programmes financed by individual Member States of the European Union. It also provides technical assistance to agencies/institutions implementing projects under these programmes.

European Union

The Member States of the European Union have decided to link together their know-how, resources, and destinies. Together, they have built a zone of stability, democracy, and sustainable development whilst maintaining cultural diversity, tolerance, and individual freedoms. The European Union is committed to sharing its achievements and its values with countries and peoples beyond its borders’.

Background to the PANCAP Justice for All (JFA) Roadmap

The PANCAP Justice for All (JFA) Programme was established in September 2013 as a regional response to the UN High-Level Political Declaration (June 2011) designed to reduce AIDS-related stigma and discrimination. The objectives of the JFA Roadmap are:

• Enhancing family life and focusing on those in need
• Increasing access to treatment and affordable medicines
• Reducing gender inequality including violence against women, girls, and adolescents
• Promoting prevention with special reference to sexual and reproductive health and rights including age-appropriate sexual education
• Implementing legislative reforms for modifying AIDS-related stigma and discrimination

Helpful links:

 PANCAP Justice for All (JFA) programme – https://pancap.org/what-we-do/justice-for-all/

 10th European Development Fund Project (EDF) – https://pancap.org/pancap-work/10th-european-development-fund-project/

 Focus of the PANCAP consultations – https://pancap.org/what-we-do/faith-leaders/