The World YWCA is committed to ensuring a high and effective participation of women and girls at the IAC and is therefore sending a delegation of 32 women to the XVII International AIDS Conference in Mexico. Several member associations successfully submitted abstracts and workshop proposals for the conference. Through participation at workshops, satellite sessions and various events, the World YWCA will highlight the challenges women and girls face in the context of HIV and AIDS.

The World YWCA will hold a one-day consultation and training for YWCA representatives on July 30. The objectives of the session are to:

• Provide women with an opportunity to share their work, including successes and challenges relating to HIV, and discuss HIV related issues women face in their countries
• Offer capacity building related to expressed challenges
• Seek input on World YWCA strategy on HIV and AIDS
• Develop a World YWCA strategy for the conference

World YWCA calendar of events at AIDS 2008

Ecumenical Pre-conference, July 31- August 2

The World YWCA will participate in the following sessions:

• Plenary session on the role of the church in addressing gender-based violence and human trafficking
• ‘Prevention from a Faith-based Perspective - Assessing what works’ (Workshop)
• All United in Prevention (workshop)
• Best Practice in Preventing HIV in Young Women Through Peer Education (workshop)

International AIDS Conference, August 3-8

Poster presentations by YWCAs:

Satellite session by World YWCA:

• Financing and Resourcing Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment In the Context of HIV and AIDS

Workshops the World YWCA will participate in:

• Navigating International AIDS Conferences for Beginners
• Developing new leadership amongst young women that effectively responds to HIV (abstract based oral session)
• Who Cares? Psycho-social, Economics and legal challenges for caregivers and strategies for action (abstract based oral session)

World YWCA representatives will take part as panellists or co-facilitate workshops at the following events:

• Expanding Access to Female Condoms through Strategic Partnerships and Informed Advocacy (CHANGE and UNFPA)
• Challenges for Women and Girls and HIV and AIDS (FEIM and CHANGE)
• Comprehensive Condom Programming - So Much Potential, Yet so Little Progress (Inter-Agency Task Team on Comprehensive Condom Programming)
• From commitment to action - Implementing effective responses on Gender and AIDS (UNDP)