The Business Response to HIV/AIDS in Nepal
|
HIV/AIDS is one of the fast growing threats for our human society. As millions of people are already infected with HIV/AIDS and many more are prone to HIV, the situation is just short of catastrophe. There is no doubt that this problem should be addressed immediately. HIV/AIDS in the workplace
HIV/AIDS cuts the supply of labour and slashes income for many workers. Increased absenteeism raises labour costs for employers. As illness forces workers to leave their jobs, valuable skills and experience are lost. The direct involvement and support of company executives can be a key to success in the battle against HIV/AIDS. By direct participation of top management and other persons working in enterprises, such as supervisors and workers, HIV/AIDS in the workplace can be effectively managed. Companies have a direct interest in the well-being of their employees, who are valuable assets, and they should therefore be informed and given the access and means to protection. What can companies do to prevent HIV/AIDS in their workplace? In the spirit of decent work and respect for the human rights and dignity of persons infected or affected by HIV/AIDS, these could be components for a concrete response to HIV/AIDS in the workplace: 1. Ongoing formal and informal discussion and education on HIV/AIDS for all staff. 2. An equitable set of policies that are communicated to all staff and properly implemented, including protection of rights at work, protection against any discrimination and respect for confidentiality. 3. The availability of condoms. 4. Diagnosis, treatment and management of sexually transmitted diseases for employees and their sex partner. 5. Voluntary HIV testing, counseling, care and support services for employees and their families. FNCCI & the business response to HIV/AIDS
Besides protecting the economic interest of the business community, FNCCI has been involved in dealing with social issues like industrial relations, safety and health, child labour, gender issues, etc. FNCCI's commitment to manage HIV/AIDS in the workplace FNCCI is an ideal non-governmental organization for mass awareness as millions of men and women are employed by FNCCI members. Considering this, FNCCI has put HIV/AIDS on its agenda for action and has already taken initiative to tackle this problem. It is thus fully committed to tackle this rapidly growing problem by raising awareness among the business organizations and wish to work together with various national and international organizations towards preventing HIV transmission in the country. Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI): Attn: Rajan Shrestha (HIV/AIDS program manager) The FNCCI – ABC on AIDS partnershipIn March 2002 a collaborative meeting on the corporate sector was organized by UNAIDS and FNCCI, during which the latter party and the Asian Business Coalition on AIDS developed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen the private sector response to HIV/AIDS in Nepal. Under this agreement, both FNCCI and ABC on AIDS have agreed to undertake four different activities:
The full text of the FNCCI Declaration of HIV/AIDS.We the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FNCCI), Employers Council (EC) Deeply concerned about the threat that HIV/AIDS presents to development and human security in our countries, and the urgent need for AIDS to be incorporated into the broader development goals of FNCCI and EC. Note that there are already an estimated 38,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in Nepal, and that the number is increasing exacerbated by the economic, social, political, financial and legal obstacles as well as harmful attitudes and customary practices, which hamper awareness, education, prevention, care and support, particularly of vulnerable groups. Recognize that while Nepal has a low HIV prevalence rate, there is a concentrated epidemic in some populations within Nepal, indicating that the epidemic is growing quickly and dramatically. The window of opportunity to prevent a generalization of the epidemic is closing very quickly in Nepal. Without effective interventions in Nepal, it is predicted that there may well be a generalized epidemic by the end of the decade with an estimated sero-prevalence of 1-2% in the age group 15-49 years. Recognize the rights and aspirations of people living with HIV/AIDS and ensure their full participation in the planning and implementation of national responses to HIV/AIDS, as well as focus attention on reducing the discrimination and stigma related to HIV/AIDS. Recognize that the private sector needs to be a part of an expanded response to the epidemic, promote the use of best practices, and make every effort to build enabling environments and support effective interventions in Nepal to prevent the rapid growth of HIV/AIDS. Encouraged that the opportunity to prevent the wide scale spread of HIV infection in our countries exists through learning from the experiences of each other and timely investments in HIV/AIDS prevention interventions/activities. The UN TG on HIV/AIDS – FNCCI PartnershipThe business response to HIV/AIDS is currently at its very initial stage. However, there is a great potential to carry out HIV/AIDS prevention work through the private sector and to upscale it if awareness is created particularly at senior management level in member companies. For this reason the UN Theme Group on HIV/AIDS in Nepal has decided to financially support the main employers union in Nepal, FNCCI, and has engaged in an MOU with FNCCI for 2002/2003. The overall goals of supporting FNCCI are the following: Goal 1 To mobilize FNCCI and its members to create best practices in HIV/AIDS prevention programmes at the workplace, which can be used to scale-up HIV/AIDS prevention programmes in other companies. Goal 2 To ensure sustainability by building capacity within FNCCI to deal with issues related to HIV/AIDS in the workplace. The main objective of the MOU between FNCCI and the UN Theme Group on HIV/AIDS is to strengthen the business response in Nepal. The main components of the programme will be 1) Advocacy 2) Policy development and 3) Establishment of HIV/AIDS prevention programmes at the workplace More specifically FNCCI and the UN Theme Group on HIV/AIDS will collaborate closely together to undertake the following activities:
To ensure the implementation of the above mentioned activities, FNCCI in December 2002 engaged a full time person to manage the programme. In order to get some guidance as to what the perceptions and knowledge is regarding HIV/AIDS among some Nepali CEOs, a very small survey was carried out among 14 CEOs. |
||
Source: abconaids.org |
HIV/AIDS is a crucial workplace issue as the epidemic has a great impact on the social and economic fabric of societies. It is a serious threat and a major challange to the attainment of goals, objectives and aspirations in the world of work. 
The Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), an umbrella organization of the Nepalese private sector, plays a key role in promoting business and industry in the country. 