In a campaign to encourage people of Rukomo sector Nyagatare district to avoid the spread of HIV/AIDS and to test for HIV virus willingly, the project BCCM if focusing on youth through sports.
The project sensitizes people with the aim of changing their mind set of the youth on healthy issues where it was revealed that the message being passed on is productive since the number of people that willingly go for HIV virus testing is tremendously increasing.
The project BCCM uses various strategies that gather large crowds of people in sensitizing people on the spread of HIV virus whereby in Rukomo sector they used football competitions as a way of gathering the youth where they were able to pass on the message concerning the spread of HIV virus.
The national representative for the youth in Rukomo sector Niyonsenga Isai said they decided to use football competitions as a way of passing on the AIDS message because it is the easiest way of delivering the intended message to many people within the shortest time possible.
“We are sure through sports, the intended message will get to many people in the short period of time”, Niyonsenga revealed.
When others were on the pitch playing football, others were on the sides cheering with messages that criticize the spread of AIDS whereas others were lining up to be tested for HIV virus.
Desire Nduwayezu who works for a cultural group and working with BCSM project intended for changing healthy habits among Rwandans said Rwandans have taken a very big step in testing for HIV virus willingly because before people used to shy away from testing for HIV virus but now the number of people who do it willingly is quite impressive.
People who were testing had no signs of fear of receiving the results. Appoline Umutone who was among the people that tested for HIV virus on that day said, “I have no fear because if I found that am HIV positive, I would be advised how to take care of myself and life continues”.
The football competitions organized during this campaign of fighting against AIDS was first held at the village level whereby the winning teams went home with packages as the girls team from Gashenyi came first and the boys team from Rurenge was also in the lead.
