West Papua Develops Creative Education to Prevent Students from HIV/AIDS Exposure

The West Papua Provincial Health Office is encouraging the development of creative, participatory, and interactive education approaches aligned with the characteristics of Generation Z to prevent students and university students from being exposed to HIV/AIDS.

Head of the Disease Prevention and Control Division of the West Papua Health Office, Frans Abidondifu, stated in Manokwari on Sunday that conventional approaches are no longer effective in reaching young people who have grown up in a digital ecosystem.

“Education must be packaged in an engaging and relevant way to the world of Generation Z, so that it can be accepted and able to prevent them from being exposed to HIV/AIDS,” he said.

According to him, various opportunities at schools, such as new student orientation periods, school anniversary celebrations, and class promotion report card events, can be utilised as maximal education spaces.

“There are many opportunities at schools that can be used to socialise health messages for young people, both students and university students,” Frans said.

He mentioned that this approach is also directed towards strengthening digital literacy and reproductive health to prevent risky behaviours that could lead to young people contracting HIV/AIDS.

“We want these prevention efforts not only to touch on health aspects but also social behaviours, including the wise use of digital media,” he said.