As EFA’s technical advisor and the facilitator of the Men As Partners program, I am proud to report that our February 2010 training has been a genuine success!
 
This two-week-long health education and wellness training benefited 30 young men who …

EFA International USA is seeking a development professional who is interested in using his or her expertise to assist us as we significantly expand our activities. While the position is currently unpaid, EFA’s hope is …

February 11th is Cameroon’s National Youth Day, a celebration of the country’s greatest asset for the future: its youth. Each year and in each village and town, primary and secondary schools participate in cultural festivals and …

We’re growing!
Given the ambitious nature of EFA’s strategic plans, the Cameroon regional office seeks a Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Advisor to facilitate the establishment of a robust M&E system for all organizational activities. The M&E Advisor will work …

Our hearts go out to the people of Haiti and all those affected by the earthquake that hit Port au Prince last Tuesday, January 12th. We send sincere wishes for the good health, safety and strength for …

 EFA International is very proud to announce that it’s Cameroon Country Representative, Alim Ousmanou, has been accepted to the US State Department’s International Visitor’s Leadership Program! Alim will be traveling to the United States in April …

HIV/AIDS concerns everyone. With a mission to promote the successful future of HIV-positive African youth, EFA International empowers young men and women with the skills to lead healthy lives and help prevent HIV/AIDS in their …

EFA International is proud to announce two new regional partnerships with health centers in the towns of Godola and Amchidé. Over the course of 2009, health center partnerships have emerged as an effective model for …

Since July 2009, the Rebero Orphan Center has experienced several administrative and managerial challenges that have begun to compromise the quality of services provided to the orphans and vulnerable children in its care. As a …

Here are some ideas for how you can make a difference on World AIDS Day: Befriend, Donate, Honor, Volunteer, Watch.

See The Washington Post story, “Slowed funding threatens AIDS fight, group says. Recession, other factors causing international donors to pull back.”
With funding from international donors tacking a backseat, the ability to effectively treat AIDS patients …

See New York Magazine article, “Another Kind of AIDS Crisis.”
Many AIDS patients being treated experience symptoms—including memory loss, bone weakness and nerve damage—more commonly seen in the elderly population. Some doctors and experts link these …

See The New York Times story, “U.N. Cites Global Rise in Detection and Treatment of AIDS.”
According to the United Nations 2009 progress report on HIV and AIDS, several related statistics took a positive turn in …

In June 2009, the EFA regional office officially launched our newest network-wide initiative, the Youth Network Coordination Committee. The committee was established to help member associations of the EFA network function more cohesively, work together …

When originally established, ROC was housed on the grounds of a bakery in the Rebero neighborhood of Kigali. The bakery was intended to fund the operations of the center, so the operations of the two …

I had the honor of first meeting Magloire in November 2005, when I was working as a Peace Corps Volunteer in northern Cameroon alongside the other founding members of EFA International. After months of …

The head of the health center in Godola recently chose three members of ASSYSGOD to serve as community coordinators for the identification of OVC (orphans and vulnerable children) in the area through a publicly-funded project. …

As the majority of AJEPSMO members come from rural villages outside of the official borders of Mokolo, members have difficulty with transport to scheduled meetings. In response, AJEPSMO has changed its meeting day to Mokolo’s …

Since AJEPS was established officially in 2005, the association has seen many members come and go for various reasons. Often, members become very
active when they first join an association, as most members are sick and …

The members of ABEPSA have created an innovative way to distribute harvests and earn money by individually selling crops at various markets around town. After all the crops have been sold, the member keeps a …

AWALLA is now collaborating with GRANDI (a local NGO) who, in collaboration with the Kolofata hospital, is identifying orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in the community and assisting them to obtain birth certificates.
Birth certificates are …

See allAfrica story, “Rwanda: U.S. Donates $ 6.8 Million to Global Lab Fund.”
National health systems must be reinforced to provide sustainable HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care for its people. One way to ensure sustainability is …

See CNN: “Nigeria agency pushes marriage to control HIV spread.”
There are countless benefits from being in a loving, committed relationship that can improve the lives and well-being of HIV-positive individuals. However, AIDS agencies should not …

See New York Times: “S. Africa Embraces Study Critical of Health Policy.”
For too long, South African politicians have held on to unfounded beliefs about HIV and AIDS.  For example, President Jacob Zuma said he “showered after …

Education Fights AIDS is a truth that has many explanations.  EFA’s work is based on the belief that education can impact people on many levels: individuals, families, communities, nations, and globally.

Individual: Helping HIV+ people to …

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The members of AWALLA are currently benefiting from the assistance of a new Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) posted in their region. The PCV is now working with AWALLA to improve their access to treatment, as …

In early 2009, ABEPSA officially joined offices with AJEPS in their office space in Maroua. This partnership allowed AJEPS to pay off outstanding rent payments and ABEPSA to establish a permanent office.
The collaboration has proven …

Education Fights AIDS International announces a new and innovative training opportunity for members of the five Cameroonian associations of people affected or infected with HIV. The Men as Partners curriculum, developed by EngenderHealth, seeks to address inequities between men and women when it comes to health and healthy behaviors.

Healing, in the anthropological sense, is a multi-sensorial process that carries an individual along the continuum from illness to wellness. In the case of people living with HIV or AIDS, “wellness” cannot be defined as an absence of the virus or as the success of a “cure”. Rather, a more holistic definition of “wellness” should be employed. A person living with HIV or AIDS is in a state of “wellness” when he or she has embraced a whole sense of him or herself and moved from a state of despair and confusion to hope and self-reclamation. The associations in the EFA network strive to create deeper, truer connectivity to self and others. As such, the associations offer an opportunity for people infected with HIV or AIDS to come into a state of wellness…

Purchase and Sale of Foodstuffs
Due to the 9 month long dry season in northern Cameroon, important cereals such as millet, corn, and soy are cultivated, dried, and stored for use during the year. Just after …

Not too long ago, I decided to visit a hospital where many of the association members go for their health care.

Relatively speaking, this hospital is a good one. It is private, meaning that the patients pay for their services—and the bills can quickly add up! There is a lab and a pharmacy on site which also makes for better, more streamlined, faster services.

EFA International is thrilled to announce the arrival of the newest member of the regional office staff! Caitlyn Bradburn is a Health Peace Corps volunteer who has been posted to EFA’s regional office for the …

During the first three months of 2009, EFA International worked closely with the Rebero Orphan Center to launch two new initiatives: an education program and a nutrition program based around a new community garden.
Education
In February, …

EFA’s first group of Peer Educators began training in March 2009 and the efforts were universally considered to be a great success! The Peer Educators spent three days learning about the program and gaining tools …

This is a good day. This is a good life. It does not take much to remind me of all the wealth, non-material, of course, and beauty that exists around me. Sometimes I do need …

In March 2009, EFA International was invited to participate in the Peace Corps Health Volunteer in-service training in Maroua. The training was attended by all Peace Corps Health Volunteers and their respective counterparts from throughout …

I have been working hard to create the peer education curriculum and spent much of this week publicizing the program to the EFA’s youth groups of people living with HIV/AIDS. The training, which will take …

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Poverty Reduction Project provides substantial grants to associations of HIV+ people in northern Cameroon. In November 2008, they approached EFA’s regional staff to inquire about potential areas of collaboration.
After …

The members of EFA’s youth associations across northern Cameroon encounter frequent discrimination and stigma due to their HIV+ status. However, members of one of the associations recently discovered that their relationship with EFA provided them …

In November 2008, EFA International officially expanded operations into Rwanda by formally partnering with the Rebero Orphan Center (ROC) in Kigali. EFA is now working with ROC to establish an Orphan and Vulnerable Children (OVC) …

This video, from the UNICEF’s YouTube Channel, frames some of the issues surrounding HIV/AIDS in Cameroon that EFA’s work attempts to address.
YAOUNDE, Cameroon, 14 January 2009
Jacqueline sits on the tattered couch in her two-room home, …

The members of ASSYSGOD, in the rural village of Godola, are planning a community garden as an income generation project. This garden will engage all members of the association and create employment opportunities, from working …

After just a month after my arrival here in Maroua, I feel more and more comfortable with the city and with all of the potentials for work opportunities. For a few weeks, I felt overwhelmed …

We hope this message finds you happy and healthy at the end of 2008. Thanks to your generous support, EFA has grown over the past year as we continue to work with five youth groups …

We know that some of you won’t be able to attend the EFA World AIDS Day fundraiser this year–you lead busy lives and make your homes around the world! But we still need your help.

Here …

EFA International welcomes the newest member of the youth network: the association of MOKOLO, situated 80 km from Maroua. The EFA regional staff and Dédoué Marcelline, MOKOLO’s Technical Assistant, worked diligently during the summer of …

Once accepted as members of the EFA youth network, associations are eligible to receive a number of benefits, including seed money to start their own income generation activity (IGA). In June 2008, EFA worked with …

In April 2008, EFA International established a Peer Mentoring Program to assist with the development of the youth network in northern Cameroon. Five members of AJEPS, the first youth association to be supported by EFA, …

University: University of Maryland College Park
My name is Ndang Azang-Njaah and I am a student at the University of Maryland College Park. During my time as an undergraduate, I was fortunate enough to be chosen …