1. Access For All...but what if you’re Youth? A Call for Inclusion of Our New Generations Raoul Fransen Young Positives XV International AIDS Conference Bangkok, 14 July 2004

2. “Young people are the key in the fight against AIDS.” – Kofi Annan, 2004 “Youth are the future”

3. Who are Youth? Not one single group Many things in common “Youth are the future”

4. Inclusion: Disproportions 50% of new infections 15-24 y/o >50% of population in SSA <18 y/o 35% of PLWHA 15-24 y/o  IAC 2002: 200 of 15,000 delegates <30 y/o

5. We are most affected We are not part of the problem, but of the solution We want to participate Young people are a resource Youth are viable and absolutely necessary partners Why inclusion of youth?

6. Improvement of programs Empowered youth New agendas Why inclusion of youth?

7. How to include youth? No tokenism Involving  Using Real participation = Policy making, planning, implementation, evaluation

8. How to include youth? 1.Put young people on National AIDS Committees and other bodies (…) 2.Harness the power of organisations of young people in program implementation (…) 3.Include young people as equal partners at future conferences and discussions (…) 4.Include structures of young people in discussing high level declarations (…) 5.Achieve transparency within organisations for young people to be able to identify the areas in which they can be involved

9. How to include youth? Limitations  Need for linkage, partnership Resources Unique institutional memory

10. Prevention AIDS fatigue Non-effective messages New forms of stigma & discrimination “No deaths = No problems” Diminished visibility  Decreased solidarity

11. Sexual & Reproductive Rights Easy access to... Prevention Specific support & services: Information, commodities, VCT, OI-& ARV-treatment, safe environments

12. Leadership Global disparity  Global unity

13. Leadership Responsibilities  Commitment  Resources

14. What we need Access to our sexual & reproductive rights Support in exercising these rights Continued participation Effectively structured... Involvement

15. You say... “Youth are the future”

16. Youth are the future

17. Thank you Acknowledgements: CHOICE Mikolaj Bekasiak Julian V. Hows Catalina Iliuta Shaun Mellors Kathy Monnier Edwin J. Nichols Kevin Osborne Peter van Rooijen Young Positives Youth Consultation for the EU Ministerial Conference on HIV/AIDS

18. www.youngpositive.com