International collaboration to enhance the fight against HIV/AIDS: report of a consultative meeting between the University of Buea in Cameroon and the Goldfarb School of Nursing in the USA

HIV/AIDS is a major public health pandemic affecting the development, survival and life of young people both in Cameroon and the USA. Youths are more adaptive to change and less hindered by prejudice than adults. Student-to-student peer mentoring is a non-formal way for students to learn new life skills and different cross-cultural values. We report on a two-day consultative meeting in 2010 on developing international collaboration for the fight against HIV/AIDS between Cameroonian and USA nursing students. We used adult learning approaches consisting of presentations, discussions, questions and answer sessions, role plays and demonstrations. Deliberations and resolutions from the consultative meeting enabled the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Buea to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Goldfarb School of Nursing in the USA on HIV/AIDS international collaboration paving the way forward for more developmental health projects in this domain.