On 25 June, 2013, Kosovo UN Cares team supported fully by the Office of UN Development Coordinator (UNDCO) and Joint United Nations Team on AIDS (JUNTA), initiated series of the UN Cares Orientation Session on HIV in the Workplace.
A total of forty-six UN staff members from UNDP, UN-HABITAT, IOM., UNICEF, UNDSS, and UNDCO, including UN Development Coordinator Ms Osnat Lubrani, participated all the way through two Orientation Sessions that were organised separately.
The sessions were facilitated by the two UN Cares HIV Learning Facilitators, Mr Bajram Maxhuni and Mr Agron Gashi, who have been recently trained on UN Cares Training of Trainers programme to facilitate UN Cares sessions on HIV in the workplace, held in Istanbul, Turkey, from 6-7 December 2012.
Prior to beginning sessions participants were supplied with the UN Cares 10 Minimum Standards brochure. Throughout the sessions that were conducted in an open, stimulating and interactive manner, participants had the opportunity to gain basic knowledge about HIV and AIDS, including essential facts about HIV and AIDS, contributing to a fair, safe and compassionate workplace, living and working with people living with or affected by HIV, elimination of stigma and discrimination, protection and making healthy decisions, living in a world with HIV, and UN-specific policies and entitlement. In addition, participants were given the opportunity to ask questions and/or raise any issue regarding HIV and AIDS, either openly or anonymously using question cards.
Feedback received from the participants at the end of session was highly positive, referring to the sessions as a very informative and relevant, both, in terms of content and methodology.
UN Cares team in Kosovo will continue to organise HIV orientation sessions, at least two sessions per month, between September and December 2013, in order to ensure that all UN staff members in Kosovo has the opportunity to complete this mandatory training.
