A monitoring visit is more than just a management task. It’s a chance to witness change in real time, to hear the voices of young people, and to meet individuals who inspire. That’s exactly what our visit last month was — and we’d love to share more about it.

This was the spirit of AFEW-Ukraine’s visit to Znamianka and Kropyvnytskyi in May, where our partners from the “Return to Life” Charitable Foundation are implementing the project
“Emergency support of HIV and SRHR services for adolescents who use drugs in war and post-war times in Ukraine.”

During the visit, we also met with the team from the “Exampey” Charitable Foundation — our new partners who generously provided a new safe space for working with adolescents, free of charge, at 46 Chornovola Street.

We also met with Senior Inspector for Special Assignments of the “Educational Safety Service” Department, Olha Varichenko. She conducts a game called “Safe Code” for adolescents, which explains their rights, responsibilities, and legal accountability in an accessible and engaging format.

Every Tuesday and Thursday, teenagers can attend group sessions and also speak with the foundation’s psychologist free of charge. Many of them are referred by social services or the police. Sometimes, adolescents need a one-on-one conversation with a specialist — not everyone feels comfortable opening up in a group setting.

The foundation’s team has successfully integrated our common project with a new initiative — “Peer Support” by the Alliance for Public Health, enhancing the project’s social component.

Thanks to this, adolescents who have already received knowledge on risk reduction and HIV prevention can take the next step — get involved in community work, become peer consultants, and eventually grow into social workers.

There are already 8 active adolescent leaders in Znamianka and 10 in Kropyvnytskyi.
Our team had the opportunity to speak with two of them — Katia and Leon.
They shared their thoughts on what it means to be a leader.

💬 “A leader is someone who empowers others. They help others learn, give advice, and explain things. At first, it felt a bit awkward — all eyes were on me, but now I’ve gotten used to it. Especially when you realize — you’re among your own.”
— Katia, Znamianka

💬 “I often have to explain basic things to my peers — about consent, condoms, HIV. People simply don’t know this because these topics aren’t discussed in society.”
— Leon, Kropyvnytskyi