Migration and vulnerability to

HIV/AIDS
Gracia Ross
Ross.Gracia@wcc-coe.org
+591 70678041 (Whatsapp)
Ecumenical HIV/AIDS Initiatives & Advocacy (EHAIA)
World Council of Churches
July 7th, 2022 Lomé-Togo
Let`s remember
some numbers
which speak about
our duty to
respond!
Estimated 12.5 million individuals from West and
Central Africa currently live outside their
country of origin
 Since 2013…
• Racism
• Extorsion
• Language barriers
• States do not consider this
movement as important, therefore,
do not put resources to manage
these populations.
• Main point of entrance is Brazil and
Ecuador
Once upon a
time…our lands
were united in
Gondwana
Movement of
people
interjected by
international
criminal
organizations of
drug dealers,
leaving people
stranded in
extremely
dangerous
contexts.
What about
HIV?
In 2019, around
48 countries
mantain some
form of HIV
restrictions
(mandatory
testing,
deportation, bans
on entry, stay and
residence)
 HIV/AIDS and people movement. What happens?
• Increased vulnerabilty to engage in unprotected sex for
survival.
• Potential abandonment of HIV medications.
• Violence including rape and gang rapes, extorsion, killing.
• People move irregularly to work, states accept that and exploit
them but if they get sick and can no longer work, then they are
deported (UAE, UK)
• THE RESULT, those vulnerable are more vulnerable to acquire
HIV. Those living with HIV, might develop AIDS.
• Exacerbation of vulnerabilty, it can get complicated depending
who you are (woman, young person, iliterate, sex worker, etc.)
 COVID-19 did not stop people mooving, not
only in Africa, Central America too

Venezuelan migrants to Peru

and Chile, when mooving
stoped their HIV medication,
some died with AIDS and
UNAIDS had to collect money
to pay for the burials.
 The war against Ukraine has a
large impact on health and
food supply for the world,
displacing 12.8 million people
within Ukraine and to other
countries, which adds to the
more than 100 million people
(1 in every 78 people on earth)
who are forcibly displaced -
the highest number ever
recorded since World War II.
Intersections of vulnerability
UNAIDS recommends
 What can we do as Christian churches?
• Service communities, accompaniment in the Use these routes and
migration and mobility routes providing practical activate our own
care (food, shelter, minimum care package for networks
sexual reproductive health, condoms and
emergency contraception, medications for HIV,
information and treatment of sexually transmitted
infections)
• Rebuild the social fabric of the communities,
create and implement socio-economic
interventions to empower the youth and prevent
emigration.
• Change the narrative of movement, no more
calling it «greener pastures». Documentation of
testimonials of people on the move. Be a witness
of injustice.
• Advocacy with governments for the respect of
human rights of mobile populations.
• Inter-sectoral work with other actors.
• For other examples, I invite my colleague Ayoko,
Regional Coordinator for EHAIA in West Africa.