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Integrating Microenterprise into Health and HIV/AIDS Programs
Co-presenters: Ellen Vor der Bruegge (FFH); Laura van Vuuren (WR)

The cross-sector responses to HIV/AIDS need to be clearly defined and understood. The purpose of the session is to build on the work initiated at last year’s CORE Annual Spring Meeting and by the SEEP/CORE HIV/AIDS Task Force. It will review the key issues and opportunities identified by the Task Force, present additional information on working models, strategies for collaboration, and suggest options and ideas that can be applied to the cross-sector programs and services. The session will build on the HIV/AIDS Working Group meeting scheduled during the CORE Annual Meeting.

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Integrating Microenterprise Development into Health and HIV/AIDS Programs: Laura van Vuuren (WR)	View	Download
HIV/AIDS Curriculum: Laura van Vuuren (WR)	View	Download
Micro-Finance and HIV/AIDS: Laura van Vuuren (WR)	View	Download

The session will cover:

• SEEP/CORE HIV/AIDS Workshop Report including the Declaration of Intent;
• Grid of MED and health sector services and resources (needs and offerings);
• Tensions between the health and microfinance service delivery sectors;
• Financial responses to life cycle events;
• World Relief/Freedom from Hunger HIV/AIDS education curriculum;
• Options for MED and health services delivery integration;
• Institutional analysis of response options;
• CORE and SEEP working groups and task force information.

1. Clarified outstanding issues or questions from the SEEP/CORE HIV/AIDS November Meeting captured in the November joint meeting report.
2. Examined and expanded the list of options for cross-sector collaboration from microfinance and health sectors in response to HIV/AIDS.
3. Validated concerns and tensions that have been identified between the health and microfinance sectors for response to the HIV/AIDS crisis.
4. Considered life cycle financial needs and microfinance service responses to them.
5. Reviewed three models for microfinance and health cross-sector response to HIV/AIDS and examined a case study demonstrating application of one product (HIV/AIDS curriculum) to each model.
6. Identified potential strategies (parallel, integrated, complimentary) for health and financial services that respond to the HIV/AIDS crisis for their organizations.
7. Decided which SEEP/CORE Working Group or Task Force to join.

Ellen Vor der Bruegge, Senior Vice President, at Freedom from Hunger was responsible for the design, implementation and dissemination of the field training system and the education component of Credit with Education. Currently, as a member of the Research and Innovations Team, she specializes in the system design and support to microfinance organizations adding education services, enhancing and expanding the education component, including curricula design, training and development of a network of technical support providers. She works with a team of health and nutrition experts that continues to develop and refine the health education modules and prepares the wider distribution of training and education materials through planned publications.

Laura van Vuuren provides technical support in non-formal education to World Relief’s 10 microfinance programs worldwide and serves as a specialist in the integration of microfinance and HIV/AIDS. With more than 15 years of international development and field experience, Laura promotes participatory training methods and develops interactive tools for health education and staff development. She has actively promoted the collaboration of HIV/AIDS and microenterprise development in national and international forums and currently serves as the facilitator of the SEEP Network’s new HIV/AIDS and MED working group.

Laura led World Relief’s participation in a USAID-funded collaboration between World Relief and Freedom from Hunger to create an HIV/AIDS prevention and care curriculum for microfinance groups.