With Patenga situated as a major port-of-call, there is a growing fear that the global HIV/AIDS epidemic will not stay at bay for long. Fortunately, Bangladesh’s HIV rate is still quite low, and World Vision aims to keep it that way. How? Education.
These men are rickshaw drivers and they have been invited to attend a three-day course on HIV, how it is spread, what the myths and facts of it are, how to prevent it, and what the warning signs are. In addition to several other educational resources, each man – who, because of his profession, has been identified as “high risk” for contracting the disease – is given a fan that he can use to cool himself on a hot day. The fan is inscribed with educational facts about HIV so that the students can, in turn, teach their peers. Each man we spoke with was excited about the prospect of sharing this information with other rickshaw drivers. They want to see change in their community.
But what makes rickshaw drivers high risk? In this shy culture, it took awhile for me to get an answer to that question. And when I found out, I almost wished I hadn’t asked. The going rate for a prostitute in Patenga is about $0.70. As a matter of “courtesy” (yes, I say that with sarcasm), sailors seeking out this form of “entertainment” (more sarcasm) will often offer their rickshaw driver a turn.And again, we are back to education . Until the value of a woman is raised above $0.70, this problem will continue to exist. But in the eight years since World Vision’s Patenga Area Development Program started, school enrolment had shot up from 35% to an astounding 92%, with most of that increase coming from girls! And that is a reason to celebrate. And hope.
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