SHARe STORY #8
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A popular music star entertains and discusses HIV/AIDS with students at Kabulonga Girls High School.
exclaimed, “The program was, in some way, a miracle to me because it gave me an opportunity to speak from my heart.” Her classmates agreed, saying the program, “Gave us the opportunity to air our views as young people when we are usually deprived of the opportunity to speak and say what we feel.” Zambia’s music stars, through SHARe II’s innovative approach, gave 7,748 Lusaka students a fresh look at how they can prevent HIV and live healthier lives. “I realized we, as youth, are powerful. We are the future,” one student remarked, inspired by the intervention. “I now believe that we can abstain, and can actually achieve an HIV-free generation!” At the end of each session, the stars and SHARe II staff left their contact details for students needing further advice and/or referral to additional services, and many students got in touch. The lesson? Zambian adolescents prefer to discuss HIV/AIDS with the stars. Therefore equipping music and other stars with correct and consistent messaging skills is important for effectively reaching Zambia’s adolescents with HIV prevention messaging and messaging for HIV service uptake for those living with HIV. n
Hearing popular music stars say abstinence ilichee (“it’s cool”) made it socially acceptable in a way that it had never been before.
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—A final year Kabulonga Girls High School student
THE SHAR e II STORY BOOK: CELEBRATING OUR SUCCESSES AND SHARING OUR STORIES
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