In a country where over 5 million have been infected with the deadly virus,
a grassroots intervention is taking hold:
“A unique prevention program has trained Ram and more than 10,000 barbers in sterilizing their razors and scissors, and has also tutored them to promote condom use, recognize the symptoms of AIDS and answer commonly asked questions about the illness.
‘Sometimes men find it awkward to discuss their sexual habits. Then I wait till their faces are covered with shaving foam, or I've started cutting their hair, before broaching the topic,' says Ram with a wry laugh. ‘They can't run away then.'”
