Young Scots join Oxfam to fight HIV & AIDS

Young people from across Scotland will mark World AIDS Day, December 1, at the World AIDS Day Youth Conference in Paisley. Every day, 6000 young people across the world contract HIV, with 15-24 year-olds making up the fastest growing group of HIV infections worldwide. In the UK, young people account for 11 per cent of annual HIV diagnoses and in Scotland, HIV infection rates are on the increase.

Oxfam Scotland and the Scottish Youth Parliament are hosting the AIDS Day Youth Conference to encourage young Scots to explore the role they can play in fighting the global HIV and AIDS crisis. Speakers from Malawi and Kenya will highlight the impact of the disease on developing countries, while UK-based charities, the Terrence Higgins Trust and HIV Scotland, will consider the personal impact of the crisis on young people in Scotland.

Twenty-year-old John Loughton, Chair of the Scottish Youth Parliament, said, "With 6000 young people contracting HIV every day it is vital that young people from Scotland push for change. There is still a real stigma surrounding HIV and AIDS in many parts of the world. We need to challenge this with youth-led, positive action. The conference will be a day of learning, sharing and a unified push for political change."

Helen Magombo, Advocacy Officer for Oxfam Malawi added, "It is essential to involve young people in the fight against HIV and AIDS, which threatens their future. Young people, both worldwide and here in Scotland need to be given the space to take the lead and to participate in the formulation and implementation of strategies that will address HIV and AIDS locally, nationally and globally. Young people should be taken as equal partners in this fight, and not only as the victims, or potential victims of the pandemic."

Emma Laverie, Scottish Youth Parliament Development Officer, concluded, saying, "It's time to talk frankly about HIV and AIDS in Scotland. Infection rates are on the rise in this country and young people are especially at risk. We need to work to reduce HIV in Scotland and the best way to do this is to make sure that young people are at the forefront of this effort. If young people are involved in a campaign from the start, it's more likely that they will take the message to heart. Young people in Scotland can be a powerful force for change."

ENDS