KENYA AIDS NGOS CONSORTIUM (KANCO)
ADVERTISEMENT FOR A RESEARCH ASSISTANT POSITION WITH KANCO
BACKGROUND ON KANCO
The Kenya AIDS NGOs Consortium (KANCO) is a national networks membership of non-governmental organizations, community based organizations, faith based organizations and research institutes that have an interest in working in the areas of HIV/AIDS, TB, Maternal and child health, harm reduction among other public health challenges in Kenya. Our main aim is to offer leadership and technical support to civil society organizations in the above public health areas.
BACKGROUND ON THE HARM REDUCTION PROGRAMME BY KANCO
Currently KANCO is conducting a 3 years Community Action on Harm Reduction (CAHR) programme supported by the Dutch government through the International HIV/AIDS Alliance. The CAHR Programme aims of significantly increasing the access of people who inject drugs to HIV prevention and care services in partnership with the various ministries of health in the country. In addition to increasing access to services, the CAHR programme aims to promote the human rights of people who inject drugs by fostering an enabling environment for HIV and harm reduction programming. It also prioritizes capacity building and knowledge sharing to expand and
grow harm reduction expertise, in particular in civil society organizations.
The objectives of the programme are:
1. To improve access to HIV and harm reduction services for people who inject drugs, their partners and families by supporting civil society service providers to increase the range and scope of HIV and harm reduction services.
2. To build capacity (organizational and technical) in Kenyan civil society organizations to develop
preparedness for harm reduction programming at scale.
3. To support a partnership approach to HIV and harm reduction responses in Kenya, working with
decision makers, experts, Government programmes and services to promote an enabling environment for evidence based responses to HIV and drug use, and to ensure a human rights-based response to the
problem of HIV and drug use in Kenya.
4. To generate and share knowledge on effective models of HIV and harm reduction programming aligned with the national context and research agenda, and informed by international examples of good practice.
BACKGROUND ON QUALITATIVE RESEARCH STUDY AMONG PEOPLE WHO INJECT DRUGS IN KENYA
In the context of increased evidence of HIV infection among people who inject drugs (PWID) in Kenya, especially in the Coastal Region, on-going policy shifts will enable the introduction and piloting of new harm reduction interventions, including needle and syringe exchange programmes (NSP) and opioid substitution treatment (OST).
KANCO, in collaboration with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (UK), is undertaking qualitative research alongside its development of harm reduction interventions. This qualitative study aims to describe the lived experiences and social contexts of access to care in relation to harm reduction, HIV prevention and HIV treatment interventions for people who inject drugs in Kenya. The key objectives of the study include: