By Baraka Simba
Eldoret National Polytechnic has praised the National AIDS and STI Control Program (NASCOP) for its timely and impactful HIV awareness campaign held at the institution. The initiative, aimed at educating students on safe sexual practices and prevention of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), was welcomed by the polytechnic’s clinical officer, Isaac Kimeli.
Kimeli noted that the NASCOP team's visit came at an important time, highlighting the significant role the awareness program would play in reducing STI cases, particularly among students. He expressed hope that through the sensitization efforts, cases of infections such as gonorrhea would decline as students now have access to information on how to protect themselves.
"The awareness efforts by NASCOP are highly commendable, and I am optimistic that they will lead to a decrease in STI cases. Our students, who are generally highly sexually active, now have the knowledge to adopt safer sexual practices," Kimeli said.
Despite the positive reception, Kimeli stressed the importance of reaching a larger percentage of the polytechnic's student population. The institution, with over 18,000 students, had only a small fraction tested and sensitized during this session. Kimeli urged NASCOP to return for further campaigns and recommended the involvement of student leaders to help spread the message and increase student participation.
"I challenge the NASCOP team to ensure that a larger number of students are sensitized in future sessions. We have a large student body, yet less than a quarter of them have been reached so far. Leveraging student leaders to promote the program could be key to boosting turnout," Kimeli added.
The HIV awareness campaign was seen as an important step toward building a healthier society, and the polytechnic is hopeful that the collaboration with NASCOP will continue to create lasting change among its students.
