assignment5

Commentary on Final Assignment

Practical Assignment: Outline of a Good Answer

For the purposes of the report, a detailed financial and procurement plan is not necessary. The budget is also indicative only - based on "guestimates" - and each line item should not take up too much time. It is recommended, however, that an additional column/line be added to the Implementation Plan indicating the particular person or organization responsible for that activity and whether they are inside the LGA or will be contracted by the LGA.

Participants should be careful not to write "wish lists" that result in requests for unreasonably large amounts of money. This requires both a reasonable assessment of potential funding availability as well as the availability, willingness and capacity of human resources to implement the work plan. Prioritization is therefore very important. It must be clear to anyone reading the proposal what the top 5 priority activities are within the work plan, where the resources will come from and who will be responsible for this.

It must be clear to the potential source of finance how they will be able to determine "success" i.e. that their money was well spent. These success indicators should be simple, measurable and meaningful.

Theoretical Assignment: Outline of a Good Answer

(i)	"Local Governments should focus on providing basic infrastructure and municipal services to their local communities. HIV/AIDS is the responsibility of the Health Ministry and should not be a priority for Local Governments who have many other responsibilities". If this was said by a mayor how would you respond? Clearly state whether or not you agree with this statement and why, using examples to illustrate your view. Make recommendations to the mayor to support any alternative you may propose.
	The point being made by the mayor is valid- HIV/AIDS is not necessarily a core responsibility of local governments. There are two complementary arguments that can be made in response.
	The risk that HIV/AIDS poses to the constituents and the local government staff is significant, and therefore HIV/AIDS is too important not to address on every level possible.
	Second, the mayor is also correct in asserting that the management of HIV/AIDS is a health sector issue- it is after all a disease. There are two arguments that can be made on the valuable role of non-health actors in addressing HIV/AIDS The most cost effective intervention for HIV/AIDS is prevention which means that people have information about the disease, can get tested, and can protect themselves from the disease (through abstinence, faithfulness and condom use). For these interventions to work people need an environment that does not stigmatize AIDS and those infected and affected and encourages people to access information about the disease. It has been found that the best way to overcome stigma is through active and positive leadership. The mayor and the local government officials have a comparative advantage in leadership and public opinion - their efforts to support their communities in protecting themselves from HIV/AIDS can have significant impacts. Local governments also have another comparative advantage- as the level of government closest to communities they reach everyone and they have a mandate to ensure that all members of the community receive adequate services (both geographically and socio-economically). In this capacity local governments have an important role to play in coordinating health and non-health actors who are providing services relating to AIDS prevention, treatment, care and mitigation.
(ii)	"In many African cities there are groups of people that are particularly vulnerable to contracting and/or spreading HIV/AIDS. These include sex workers, truckers, migrant/seasonal workers, young girls, orphans and unemployed youth." If you were given an audience with the mayor of a city, what might you propose as a mainstreaming approach to reach these groups in your locality?
	First, it is important to understand that vulnerable groups should be seen as allies in fighting the epidemic and not causes of the epidemic. Fighting stigma against HIV/AIDS and communities vulnerable to the disease is a first priority.
	In order to make the case to the mayor for mainstreaming you will need to have a good understanding of who these vulnerable groups are, what their specific needs are with regards to HIV/AIDS, and where they can be reached. These individuals are the mayor and local government authority's constituents- and you will need to make the case for why the local government authority should address their needs- without stigmatizing them. A key point is that by addressing vulnerable groups effectively you can reduce the spread and impact of HIV/AIDS on the city.
	In addition, you will need to make the case for why mainstreaming is the cost-effective way to address their needs. An effective argument is that the local government authority has staff and services that reach all parts of the community- and that with minimal additional resources you can effectively address a very important issue.
	For example, local government authority staff may interact with truckers through tax collection or inspection of goods and vehicles. Could staff responsible for these tasks receive training to provide basic HIV/AIDS messages and provide condoms? Does the local government authority, with the Education sector, have the resources to run youth programs (on nutrition, sport, culture etc.)? Within these existing programs, could the local government authority develop some HIV/AIDS specific activities and to provide additional incentives or programs to target orphans and young girls? Perhaps the local government authority may wish to enlist the help from a local NGO? Unemployed youth may congregate and socialize in certain parts of the city/town, perhaps public places like parks and markets or at private establishments like bars or restaurants. What local government authority departments work within these locations (i.e. parks department, health inspection officers)? Could they be given with educational materials and condoms that can be provided within those locations? Might there be an opportunity to prioritize youth employment schemes as a means to address both the issue of youth unemployment, and to incorporate HIV/AIDS messages within such schemes? Seasonal workers and migrants often live together in settlements and camps, and they often travel in groups to work sites. Does the local government authority provide any services or outreach to these communities? How might they include HIV/AIDS prevention within their work with these groups? Could the local government authority work with the employers to create partnerships that could better serve these vulnerable groups?
	When making the case for mainstreaming the key argument is that this is the most cost-effective way - through leveraging of available services and staff- to target and provide services to vulnerable groups and that not doing so will create greater risks and greater costs to the city/town in the long run.
	Mainstreaming does not mean that activities need to be carried out only by local government staff. Some very good examples of mainstreaming include NGOs or community groups that provide the actual services within the framework of local government services/ structures.