Coordination of Action Research on AIDs and Mobility
CARAM Asia Research Launching Ceremony on The Occasion of Universal Health Coverage Day 2022.
42 MEMBERS IN 18 COUNTRIES ACROSS ASIA, AND MIDDLE EAST, AND EMPOWERS MIGRANT WORKERS AGAINST HIV AND AIDS
incorporates a rights based
approach in promoting
and protecting migrants’ health
and
labour rights with focus on HIV,
Srhr, and violence against
women workers
CARAM Asia is a regional network of 42 migrant and migrant support organizations in eighteen countries across Asia, including Middle East. CARAM Asia is a non-profit and non-governmental organisation (NGO), that educates, promotes and protects migrants’ labour and health rights with a focus on HIV&AIDS and SRHR issues since its establishment in 1997. Based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the CARAM Asia Secretariat works with its member organizations at regional level to work for advancement of migrant worker’s labour and health rights.
CARAM Asia's task forces are prioritised in line with four key thematic areas:
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CARAM Asia works for promotion and protection of migrant worker’s health rights with
focus on HIV & AIDS and
SRHR issues in the region. The network is presently working on the regional project titled " Prevention &
Advocacy on Migrant's HIV Issues, Enhancing Access to Health Services and Promoting HIV Positive Migrant's
Rights in Asia". This project is comprised of three years funding cycle from 2022 to 2024, funded by the
Robert Carr Fund (RCF) for Civil Society Networks, aiming to address stigma and discrimination against
HIV-positive migrant workers (MWs), enhance MW’s access to health services, conduct advocacy with key
stakeholders for the protection of MWs’ health rights and address laws, policies and practices issues related
to HIV, MW’s criminalization based on HIV-positive status and other health conditions. The project also covers
the areas of awareness-raising on HIV prevention, conducting capacity building of the project partners,
community-based organizations (CBOs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), migrant community leaders, MWs
etc.
The significant collaboration with CARAM Asia's project partners in three Asian sub-regions— South Asia,
comprising the Ovibashi Karmi Unnayan Programme (OKUP) in Bangladesh, SPEAK Trust in Pakistan, Community
Development Services (CDS) in Sri Lanka, and POURAKHI in Nepal, Southeast Asia includes the North South
Initiative (NSI) in Malaysia and Action for Health Initiatives (ACHIEVE) in the Philippines and Middle
East
features Migration Services and Development (MSD) in Lebanon—is leading to various activities being
implemented by the project partners, which hold corresponding purposes. The Robert Carr Fund (RCF) for Civil Society Networks has been instrumental in providing CARAM Asia with
the
ongoing financial support as it implements the current regional project for 2022 to 2024 funding cycle.
The
tremendous support from RCF in the past years and for the current project implementation makes it possible
for CARAM Asia to work extensively with the project partners at national, international, and regional
levels
for advocacy and at community levels among MWs in sending and receiving countries by executing its
overarching strategies. To learn more about RCF, please click this link here. PAR, which is identified as a core initiative of CARAM Asia, is designed to integrate migrants'
perspectives
and points of view on HIV & AIDS, MW’s vulnerabilities to HIV, SRHR issues and other health conditions,
and
develop potential policy recommendations. Currently, a few research studies are being conducted under this
project such as “Health of Bangladeshi Migrant Workers: A Cost Analysis from Social and Economic
Perspective” and “Research on Workers’ Understanding about HIV and Barriers in Accessing Health Services
in
Malaysia” to give attention to unaddressed issues of MWs especially on health’s rights. Recently, completed research studies under this project are “Identify the Risk Factors that make Migrant
Workers More Vulnerable to Contracting HIV and What Interventions could be Taken to Reduce this Risk” in
Sri
Lanka and “Identify the Percentage of Migrants among Registered People Living with HIV (PLHIV)” in
Pakistan
produced fruitful key findings such as data acquisition on number of MWs with HIV and risk factors for
HIV.
These research outcomes are potentially being used for advocacy activities such as policy recommendations
and to come up with insightful and research-based evidence on MWs and their current needs. For example,
CDS
has submitted research outcomes to important policy makers in Sri Lanka for further actions. Built on the PAR, this strategy involves program policies and resource advocacy such as engagements
between
civil society organizations (CSOs) and relevant stakeholders. Within this strategy, CARAM Asia and its
project partners are implementing well-established advocacy plans using the evidence-based from the PARs.
For instance, advocacy meetings are being conducted with stakeholders including government officials,
political representatives, NGOs, embassies, consulates, foreign service providers and others to advocate
them on MWs’ needs. These are to achieve several outcomes; creating referral mechanisms for MWs at the
airports in Pakistan, streamlining deportation process of MWs in Pakistan, sharing the research outcomes
for
the purpose of educating stakeholders with MWs’ needs in Pakistan, demanding the government for MWs’
health
protection in Bangladesh, creating standard operating procedures (SOPs) for MWs’ protections in Lebanon,
reforming the policies and laws for HIV-positive MWs in Nepal, addressing health issues and ensuring that
HIV and AIDS-related activities and services are created based on the current needs of MWs in the
Philippines. These activities demonstrate that CARAM Asia strongly advocates for the recognition of MW’s
vulnerability to HIV & AIDS, and SRHR due to various factors involved in the migration process. CARAM Asia
also advocates for the removal of discriminatory health policies which criminalize MWs based on
HIV-positive
status. Many of these project activities are designed to address these issues at various levels. Strengthening the skills and capacity of CARAM Asia’s project partners is one of the influential elements
in
determining the success of CARAM Asia in achieving its goals. For that reason, CARAM Asia is capacitating
the project partners with the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) training to empower them to have a better
evaluation on the outcomes of project activities. Together, project partners are taking various
initiatives
including provision of training such as training of trainers (TOTs) workshop and orientation to officers,
building on knowledge on HIV/AIDS and life skills training to different groups such as MWs and families,
government officers, commercial sex workers and staff members of various civil society organizations, to
fully equipped them with relevant capacities. Knowledge was boosted and skills were made available via the
capacity builds that cover a variety of topics. For instance, roll-out training is introducing migrant
leaders with HIV and STI related information , M&E training is providing project partners with the
necessary
tools to understand the M&E processes and orientation training are providing educational opportunities for
foreign service officers to learn about HIV policies in relation to MW’s rights. The implementation of
these
activities follows from the fact that it improved their capacity to manage activities they engaged in
their
organizations. Crucial aspect of HIV prevention among MWs is awareness raising and increasing knowledge on HIV & AIDS
related topics. HIV information generation and dissemination implemented by CARAM Asia’s project partners
is
not limited to MWs, but include hospital staffs, nursing students, potential MWs, youth, CSOs/NGOs,
government officials, political representatives and other important stakeholders. Onsite HIV/AIDS
awareness
raising sessions such as in hospital, health care, nursing school, detention centers, via forums theaters
and other online social media campaigns and materials dissemination on HIV/AIDS are combining together to
reach the above-mentioned targeted populations to the greatest extent. Moreover, the annual World AIDS Day
celebration and HIV/AIDS prevention forum theater are part of this project initiative for the
mass-awareness
raising. This is an essential part of developing new knowledge and enhancing awareness of MWs' health
rights, notably in HIV prevention, for having equal protection under laws, and accessibility to assistance
and health services without stigma and discrimination by hospital staff and health care providers. To ensure health rights of MWs regardless of their status, CARAM Asia and its project partners are making
services more accessible and available to MWs and their families. In spite of MWs' rising needs for
healthcare services, illness prevention and treatment, and other services, the national health programmes
are frequently neglecting them. With that, provision of services such as counseling sessions, referral
services, self-support groups, service mechanism reconstruction, online psycho-social supports and medical
assistance are being implemented as a part of the CARAM Asia’ regional project activities with the means
to
tackle such issues. Additionally, the RESQ team has been formed to increase accessibility and outreach
services for MWs with lack of access to HIV services in Malaysia. Increased health access was proven to
empower MWs living with HIV and enhance general mental and physical well-being. To conclude, this project showed remarkable outcomes in the previous year. Notably, ACHIEVE’s
representation
as a CSO to the Philippine National AIDS Council (PNAC) and the 7th AIDS Medium Term Plan (AMTP 7)
influenced changes in policy formulations to include MWs in HIV prevention programs. The development of
11-point action plans for the key affected population (KAP) on HIV/AIDS in Bangladesh resulted from
collaboration of OKUP with UNAIDS and Community Forum Bangladesh. The creation of the technical working
group (TWG) through SPEAK Trust’s stakeholder’s sensitization marked the progress towards the
implementation
of an HIV testing and referral system at international airports in Pakistan. POURAKHI's status as the
voice
of MWs was also strengthened with the formation of a coalition with CSOs addressing MW issues in Nepal.
Other noteworthy accomplishments include large number of beneficiaries/recipients of services who were
directly benefited from services delivery, education and awareness campaigns on HIV prevention which
conducted by CARAM Asia's project partners, MSD, CDS and SPEAK Trust, include the provision of medical
support to MWs who are detained, HIV screening of deportees and returnees and their access to health
services, and HIV awareness training for migrant prisoners, potential MWs, and other Key Affected
Populations. NSI has also created the first-ever training module to build capacity and educate the
community
leaders who are MWs about risk behaviors for HIV infection, prevention, and the availability of HIV- and
STI-related health services. The 2022 activities' outcomes, notably in treating the HIV issues among MWs,
were crucial to assess the effectiveness and its impacts they had on positively improving MWs' lives.CARAM Asia’s Working Strategies:
a. Conducting participatory action research (PAR) studies to generate knowledge and evidence in support
of the rights of MWs and use the evidence for advocacy and awareness raising.
b. Advocating for the progression of MWs' rights at different levels including national, regional, and
international levels
c.Implementing relevant capacity-building activities in accordance with the needs of the
stakeholders involved (MWs, CSOs, PLHIV networks, etc.)
d. Advancing migrant workers' rights through media campaigns and other relevant public relations
activities
e. Increasing access to services for MWs, including health, legal, and other relevant services
All people have the right to stay or move and live and work in dignity with equal rights in a society, where their quality of life is ensured.
To empower migrants, their families and communities throughout the migration process and build capacities of Community Based Organisations (CBOs) and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) working for the promotion and protection of migrants’ health rights with focus on HIV & AIDS including sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR).
Utilise Participatory Action Research (PAR) to ensure inclusion of migrant’s voices and perspectives on HIV vulnerabilities, migrant worker’s health status and give potential policy recommendations for effective national and regional advocacy
Use the rights-based approach in promoting and protecting migrant worker’s health rights through interventions to reduce all vulnerabilities and improve social determinants of health throughout the migration process.
CARAM Asia endeavours to institutionalise and incorporate a rights based framework from which to address migrants’ health concerns. Two other frameworks used in developing and implementing programmes are the Greater Involvement of People Living with HIV (GIPA) principles as well as gender and sexuality frameworks.
Four key thrusts and pillars which provide momentum to CARAM Asia programmes are Participatory Action Research (PAR), national and regional advocacy, coalition building and capacity building for CBOs and NGOs working with migrant communities.
These approaches provide an impetus for the development of research, publications, campaigns and policy prescriptions for CARAM Asia programmes.
PAR has assisted migrants in developing information tools which empowers them to understand, provide solutions and better manage their own situations. The real strength in PAR is that it is conducted by local communities for local communities.
Outputs from PAR are used for key regional advocacy and capacity building activities aimed at creating a regional response to improving the health and well-being of Asian migrant workers.
Board of Directors
Migrant Assistance Program (MAP Foundation), Thailand
DAWN (Development Action for Women Network)
Philippines
MSD (Migrant Services and Development), Lebanon
Development Alternatives for Wider Network (DAWN), India
OKUP (Ovibashi Karmi Unnayan Program), Bangladesh
PHILIPPINES
Migrant
PHILIPPINES
The CARAM Asia Secretariat operates from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The core team members are:
Musarrat Perveen (Regional Coordinator)
Elizabeth Deveraj (Finance Manager)