Radio 4000 Podcast | Children & AIDS

#Radio4000 - Engage. Enable. Empower.

UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) Regional Office, in partnership with the Global Fund and the HER Voice Fund, launched Radio 4000, the first-ever podcast series supporting implementing partners to programme with and for adolescent girls and young women in HIV and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR).

As the name of the podcast suggests, 4000 adolescent girls and young women in sub-Saharan Africa acquire HIV every week. Despite accounting for 10% of the region’s population, adolescent girls and young women make up one in four of all new HIV infections across ESA and six in seven new HIV infections among adolescents, aged 15-19 years, occur among girls.

This podcast is brought to you by UNICEF in partnership with the Global Fund and the Her Voice Fund

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Season II: EPO - Setting the Stage for Season TWO

Welcome to the Radio 4000 podcast. This second season includes five additional episodes, understanding risk, money and relationship dynamics, adolescent girls and young women in leadership, condom programming and social behaviour.

Now, to kick off this season, we have some very special guests in the studio :

Lieke Van de Wiel - UNICEF Deputy Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa,
Gail Steckley - Regional Manager for the Southern and Eastern Africa team at the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and malaria and
Maximina Jokonya - Y+ Global as HER Voice Fund Coordinator.

You can find more information about us and our work here: https://www.unicef.org/esa/

This podcast has been made possible by UNICEF in partnership with the Global Fund and the Her Voice Fund. Radio 4000 Engage, Enable, Empower.

Season II: Episode 1 - Understanding Risk

Imagine a world where modern data tools can be used to increase access for all adolescent girls and young women and ensure better quality of HIV and SRH services. Shocks, life changes and personal choices can all impact on their sexual and reproductive health. We need to find ways to ensure that specific programmes reach those adolescent girls and young women that need them the most. In this episode, we dive deep into best practices for identifying risk and improving access service packages.

This podcast features the voices of:

Saidy Brown - SRH Rights Acrivist from South Africa
Evelyn Namaiko - Program Officer at Zambia Network For Young People Living with HIV - ZNYP+
Deborah Leticia Akumu - SRH Rights Advocate from Uganda
Jane Ferguson - Director, Healthy Adolescents and Young Adults (HAYA), based at the Africa Health Research Institute in South Africa

You can find more information about us and our work here: https://www.unicef.org/esa/

This podcast has been made possible by UNICEF in partnership with the Global Fund and the Her Voice Fund. Radio 4000 Engage, Enable, Empower.

Season II: Episode 2 - Money and Relationship Dynamics

In today's episode, we focus on money, relationship dynamics, age appeal, and their implication on adolescent girls and young women's programmes. Sexual relationships between young women and older men are common drivers of the HIV epidemic in the ESA region. We delve into the dynamics, decisions, and shared experiences within these relationships, considering their impact on the sexual and reproductive health of adolescent girls and young women.

This podcast features the voices of:

Miranda Ziba - Programs manager - Zambian Youth Platform
Jenny Kayombo - Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights,Community Engagement, Digital Communication & Gender Expert from Tanzania
Hasina Subedar - Technical Adviser, National Department of Health on HIV Prevention Repulic of South Africa.

You can find more information about us and our work here: https://www.unicef.org/esa/

This podcast has been made possible by UNICEF in partnership with the Global Fund and the Her Voice Fund. Radio 4000 Engage, Enable, Empower.

Season II: Episode 3 - Condoms: available, accessible and acceptable

Male and female condoms, when used correctly and consistently, are safe and highly effective in preventing transmission of sexually transmitted infections - including HIV, and unintended pregnancies. In this episode we hear from AGYW and male partners about their experiences with condoms - and how programmes ensure their availability, acceptability, and accessibility. We learn about what works best for AGYW in differing contexts.

This podcast features the voices of:

Bidia Deperthes- Team Lead, Sexual Health/Global Prevention Advisor UNFPA-Senegal
NtombiKayise Ncube - Youth SRHR and HIV Advocate, CATS Mentor
Lupakisyo Bukuku: medical personnel working with the network of young people with HIV and Y plus at the Youth Advocates Coordinator

You can find more information about us and our work here: https://www.unicef.org/esa/

This podcast has been made possible by UNICEF in partnership with the Global Fund and the Her Voice Fund. Radio 4000 Engage, Enable, Empower.

Season II: Episode 4 - Beyond participation: Young Women Lead!

Programmes are more impactful when young women have their say in the decisions that affect them. Leadership is more than speaking up; it's about having influence through being informed and engaged. SRH and HIV programmes need to be intentional in supporting AGYW to lead; and in creating space to harness their leadership. In this episode young women take the lead, as they share and reflect on their leadership journeys.

This episode features the voices of:

Joyce Ouma – Advocacy and Camaigns Officer at Yplus Global. Global ambassador for AGWY from Kenya
Brenda Bakobye Khayumbe - Head of Program and Partnership at Y+ Kenya, and Her Voice Fund Ambassador
Musonda Memory Chikombo- Her Voice Fund Ambassador

You can find more information about us and our work here: https://www.unicef.org/esa/

This podcast has been made possible by UNICEF in partnership with the Global Fund and the Her Voice Fund. Radio 4000 Engage, Enable, Empower.

Season II: Episode 5 - Finding the answer to SRH and HIV questions

In this final episode, we take a look at how social behaviour change approaches can support adolescents and young people to find answers to questions about HIV and SRH. We hear about multiple platforms of delivery including MTV Shuga Down South; and how they can be used to reach young people where they are. Programmes are empowering young people with information and skills to make decisions that improve their sexual and reproductive health.

This episode features the voices of:

Massimiliano Sani: Deputy Global Lead - Social and Behaviour Change - UNICEF HQ · UNICEF
Stephanie Ndlovu: MTV Shuga Actor
Yvonne Diogo: Country Director: MTV Staying Alive Foundation

You can find more information about us and our work here: https://www.unicef.org/esa/

This podcast has been made possible by UNICEF in partnership with the Global Fund and the Her Voice Fund. Radio 4000 Engage, Enable, Empower.

Radio 4000 Season One Introduction

Each week, 4000 adolescent girls and young women in sub-Saharan Africa acquire HIV. Radio 4000 was created as a platform to discuss, respond and promote peer-to-peer learning about the models that work. Our goal is to amplify their voices and to center their preferences and experiences. We share stories, best practices, and tools to improve our everyday work.

Read more about the podcast.

Episode 1: Improving lives of adolescent girls and young women

In east and southern Africa, young women continue to be disproportionately at risk of HIV infection and other sexual and reproductive health challenges. There is an urgent need to scale-up well-designed and effective programmes that meet the sexual and reproductive health and HIV-related needs of young women in the region. In this episode our guest, UNICEF Associate Director of HIV/AIDS Anurita Bains, unpacks practical steps that programme implementers can use to integrate key guidance to improve the quality and delivery of programmes for adolescent girls and young women.

Episode 2: Adolescent friendly services: what works?

Navigating the healthcare system can be challenging for anyone, and even more so for adolescents seeking HIV & sexual reproductive health (SRH) services. In this episode, we explore good practice examples of successful adolescent-friendly health service delivery and understand how these can be integrated into adolescent girls' SRH and HIV programmes.

Episode 3: The Power of peers

Eastern and Southern Africa is home to 1.74 million adolescents living with HIV. In this region, AIDS is the leading cause of adolescent mortality. In this episode, we explore how investing in appropriate and quality programmes for this key group can improve relevant health outcomes and subgroups, such as those who are pregnant and breastfeeding, as well as impact HIV prevention.

Episode 4: PrEPing adolescenet girls and young women

Oral PrEP has proven to be a highly effective strategy in preventing HIV infection in adolescent girls and young women. However, challenges remain in supporting the proper and sustained use of PrEP among this highly vulnerable group. This episode outlines the evidence and lessons from implementation, as well as key considerations highlighted through a recent PrEP think tank centred on adolescent girls and young women, facilitated by UNICEF and the Global Fund. This was supported by partners including WHO AFRO.

Episode 5: It takes two

In this episode of Radio 4000, we focus on men and boys. Our guests, Thulani and Shawn, discuss how sexual, reproductive health & HIV programmes benefit from targeting the needs of men, boys and young women. They unpack the successful Coach Mpilo model. We also hear about masculinity and issues` men face, from rugby legend and UNICEF Regional Ambassador, Tendai 'Beast' Mtawarira.