A Safe Haven

Ruslan1, 20, had difficulty making new friends when he moved to Almaty, Kazakhstan. Soon enough, he fell in with the wrong group of kids in a nearby neighborhood. They often talked about cannabis – they knew where to get it and how to buy it at a cheap price.

Ruslan started joining them to smoke and then skip school, spending most days high on the rooftops in his neighborhood. He also started to abuse alcohol. Ruslan continued down this path for a year; he became aggressive, fought often, came home late and had problems at school, with his parents and with other youth.

The HIV prevalence among young people aged 15-24 in Kazakhstan is less than 1 percent. Ruslan, who began to engage in high-risk behavior, was at risk of becoming a part of this statistic.

One day, when he was walking home alone in the rain he passed a sign that read “Youth Power Center” and decided to check it out.

The Center is part of the ORLEU program implemented by PSI/Kazakhstan with support from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The ORLEU program’s youth component targets at-risk youth – those aged 15-24, living in low-income communities where drugs are widely available. The program provides them with access to HIV-prevention health and social services, behavior change communication and healthy alternatives to drug use. There are centers in the cities of Almaty, Karaganda, Shymkent, Semey and Pavlodar.

At the Youth Power Center that Ruslan entered, volunteers welcomed him into the group and invited him to recreational activities. Over time, he made new friends at the center. He joined them for English courses, Internet clubs, sports activities, and he even received counseling. Ruslan also learned about HIV and TB prevention and safer sexual practices. These services were all free of charge at the Center.

To date, the ORLEU project has reached 31,345 at-risk youth like Ruslan. PSI has also developed educational materials and guidelines for other trainers on HIV, sexually transmitted infections and drug addiction prevention among at-risk youth. With the help of the Center, Ruslan left his old life behind and has embraced a life with friends and activities that steer him in a healthy, happy direction.

– PSI Author: Jyoti Kulangara, Coordinator, Corporate Marketing, Communications & Advocacy, Washington, D.C.

1. 1. Name changed to protect identity and privacy