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Source: CIA Factbook
Brazil Partner Profiles
KOINONIA – Presence and Service
Project: Health and Human rights Program
Activities include:advocacy; community education; workshops; human rights; training; networking; policy; peer education; resource centre for youth, NGOs, persons living with HIV and AIDS, women, churches.
A Brazilian ecumenical agency, KOINONIA established its Health and Human Rights Program in order to work with rural worker organizations and urban (Candomble) and rural (Quilombo) Afro-Brazilian communities in the fight against stigmatization and discrimination facing people living with HIV and AIDS, particularly women and youth. The program involves training and supporting a network of educators to carry out education work in their local communities, and advocacy work with and in the Brazilian churches, state and national HIV and AIDS organizations, networks and forums. KOINONIA also participates actively in the World Council of Churches’ Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance’s working group on HIV and AIDS.
What difference does partnership with PWRDF make? With support from PWRDF, two KOINONIA staff members involved in its HIV and AIDS work, Anivaldo Padilha and Ester Almeida, attended the Ecumenical Pre-conference and International AIDS Conference in Toronto in August 2006. Following the events, both Anivaldo and Ester expressed appreciation for the opportunity to participate, network, teach and learn with and from others present, and to take their learnings back to their work in Brazil. PWRDF also benefited greatly from their presence, participation and perspectives. PWRDF entered partnership in 1994 and more specifically for HIV and AIDS in 2004. We anticipate completion of partnership 2011.
