Global Youth Coalition on HIV/AIDS

HIV/AIDS is a preventable and treatable disease. Yet today, 6,000 young people will be infected with HIV, most of them young women. Over half of the 5 million people infected each year are under 25 years old. Poverty, unemployment, a lack of education, sexual violence, and gender inequality increase the vulnerability of young people to HIV infection.

15 million children and adolescents have been orphaned by AIDS and are now heads of households, and in many countries we are losing an entire generation of parents, teachers, workers, and doctors. Although world leaders committed that by 2005, 90% of young people would know how to protect themselves from infection, currently in the hardest hit countries, less than 1/3 of youth have information and tools to avoid infection.

Despite the debilitating effects of AIDS, young leaders are taking action in their communities to prevent the spread of the disease and to address the devastating consequences of the pandemic. In fact, evidence shows that young people are most effective at changing the risk behaviors of their peers and at shaping a better future for themselves and their families.

It is an accepted fact that development is most successful when change comes from within a community itself— not from outsiders. The Global Youth Coalition on HIV/AIDS (GYCA) recognizes the potential of young leaders as the best force to address HIV/AIDS in their own communities, and empowers them with the knowledge, skills, resources and opportunities they need to scale up and expand their initiatives.

GYCA is a youth-led, UNAIDS and UNFPA-supported alliance of 3000 young leaders and adult allies working in 148 countries worldwide. GYCA was initiated by young participants of the Barcelona and Bangkok International AIDS Conferences in 2002 and 2004, and continues to create opportunities for meaningful participation of young people all over the world in decision-making that affects their lives.

GYCA's main pillars of operation are: 1) Networking and sharing of best practices 2) Capacity building and technical assistance 3) Political advocacy 4) Preparation for international conferences.

GYCA operates on two tiers: 1) Using basic information technology (free e-courses, information-sharing e-fora, a global directory to network local activists, etc.) and 2) With marginalized and non ICT-connected young people (through local gatherings and trainings).

GYCA takes a human-rights and evidence-based approach to HIV and AIDS and prioritizes sexual and reproductive health. Our members, including youth living with HIV and AIDS, work on all aspects of the pandemic such as caring for AIDS orphans and vulnerable children, harm reduction for injecting drug users, alternative livelihood skills for sex workers, peer education, advocacy for treatment access and trade justice, etc.