AFGA intends to create an enabling environment to reduce vulnerability to HIV/AIDS through increased public awareness on HIV/AIDS and integrated HIV into RH services. Currently AFGA provides HIV/AIDS prevention and awareness activities through one VCCT Center located at Center Jail in Kabul city.

The objective of setting up of a VCCT Center in the jail is to provide primary prevention to the prison inmates, prison staff and their family members and to link people living with HIV to care and support programmes. 

Specifically, the project aims to:

(1) Increase the awareness on HIV/AIDS among prison inmates, prison staff and their families through specific awareness generation programmes;

(2) Reducing the risks and vulnerabilities of prison inmates, prison staff and their families to HIV infection through the provision of need based IEC/BCC materials, condoms and risk reduction strategies for injecting drug users;

(3) Providing confidential counseling and HIV testing facilities to those voluntarily clients; and

(4) To link people living with HIV to other care and support programs.

The VCCT Center rehabilitated by AFGA, furnished with equipment, medical and non medical supplies. AFGA has hired qualified staff (male counselor, female counselor and Lab. Technician) for the Center. The Center inaugurated on 12th of September 2006 through an opening ceremony that Deputy Minister of Public Health for Reproductive and Mother and Child Health, AFGA president and CEO and Director of Central Jail along with other officials and media representative were present.

The staff of the Center has trained by MOPH National AIDS Control Program facilitators during five days training program. The staff gets benefit to build their skills through working in the Center VCCT running by MOPH in Kabul city.

The Center is providing the following services:

• Pretest and post test counseling.
  
  
• Performing Rapid Test for HIV.
  
  
• Referring the cases for confirmatory case to Central VCCT.
  
  
• Performing test for HBs.
  
  
• Referring those clients who need health services to the Health Center located at Central Jail compound.
  
  
• Distributing different IEC materials.

The Center has room for male counseling, female counseling, waiting area and Laboratory room. The above mentioned services are provided free of charge to the clients.

The Center will work as mobile team and provide HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention services to other Prisons located in Kabul province and neighboring provinces.

The Center has provided pre and post test counseling to 165 clients, performed Rapid HIV and HBs tests for 229 clients and has conducted awareness to workshop to 98 staff of the Jail during this period (10th of September- 31 of October 2006)