LISTEN is a model that places communities at the centre in scaling up HIV response using existing structures such as Boda Boda and Fisher Folk communities

National AIDS Control Council (NACC) through the support of Georgetown University’s Center for Global Health Practice and Impact and Final Mile organised a capacity building session for staff on human-centred design (HCD) in HIV response.

Human Centred design is a problem-solving process that begins with understanding the human factors and context surrounding challenges. It requires working directly with users – people who directly use the services or deliver the solution – to co-design new ideas that are viable and appropriate in their context.

The program, designed for staff who are in the senior and mid-level management, provided training through a hands-on simulated projects that addressed areas of interest and challenges in the HIV response experience.

The process focuses on people and their behaviour. These behaviours include: what matters to them, their interests, perception of people around them, their priorities, their trade-off, and their feeling about the problems.

How it works  

HCD starts with understanding the individual’s mindset – ideas and attitudes – which a person experiences when approaching a situation. The mindset is further supported by other factors namely: curiosity where learning is achieved through asking questions, actively listening and seeking truth and authenticity.

Additionally, it requires being empathetic with others by perceiving their challenges and circumstances, resilient by being comfortable with unknowns and embracing possibility, collaborative through working together to accomplish a goal, and experimental by focusing attention on what matters most and exploring to approach it.

The NACC has been coordinating the implementation of Local Innovations Scaled through Enterprise Networks (LISTEN) in Kiambu and Homabay counties through the support of Center for Global Health Practice and Impact of Georgetown University-and Final Mile.