Institute of Public Health jointly with Support Center for Deaf People “Umit” have implemented “Deaf adolescents and HIV” project, which allowed to raise awareness of deaf adolescents on HIV/AIDS prevention issues. This project was financed by means of a grant allocated by the World Bank project on Central Asia AIDS Control. Results of the project were presented at the press conference, which took place on November 3rd, 2009 in Almaty.

Planning of “Deaf adolescents and HIV” project started in August 2008. Number of working meetings has been organized including teachers and experts working with deaf adolescents. With the purpose to determine level of awareness, knowledge and behavior practice among deaf adolescents research has been carried by means of survey, which revealed low level of awareness about HIV/AIDS.

In this connection, within the framework of the project, methodological recommendations have been developed for teachers and hearing specialists working with deaf and hearing impaired children. Such manuals were designed to assist teachers of pedagogical colleges to teach deaf and hearing-impaired students on HIV-infection. In addition, trainings on various aspects of HIV prevention were conducted for teachers and hearing specialist.

Global Survey on HIV/AIDS and Disability carried out by the World Bank and Yale University back in 2004 found out that people with disabilities have a two- to three-times higher risk of acquiring HIV/AIDS due to widespread abuse and that lack of information for the visual and hearing impaired is a factor.

Considering the fact that the number of hearing-impaired people in Kazakhstan has totaled to 155 thousand and 1/3 of them are youth, issues of education system in the field of HIV/AIDS play a key role in creation of conditions to help this group to prevent HIV infection. With the help of methodical recommendations developed and published within the framework of the project, deaf adolescent will now know more about sexual and reproductive health, HIV and AIDS transmission. It is important to mention that such project directed to increase knowledge and awareness of deaf adolescent is carried out for the first time in Central Asia, and according to Gulshara Aimbetova, Project Coordinator, it is planned to extend this experience to other countries of Central Asia as well.