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Stop AIDS; Keep the promise
Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition
December 03, 2007

As people around the world commemorated World AIDS Day on the 1st of December, those living with HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe had nothing to commemorate as they continue to bear the brunt of the grueling economic hardships the country is experiencing.

This year's theme is Stop AIDS; Keep the promise - Leadership where civil society organizations, communities and families are being called upon to provide leadership and initiative in the fight against the pandemic. The government and policy makers have been tasked to ensure that they meet the many targets that have been set in the fight against HIV and AIDS, especially the promise of universal access to HIV treatment, care, and support and prevention services by 2010.

According to statistics provided by Avert, there are more than 1,700,000 people living with HIV and AIDS in Zimbabwe with the prevalence rate for adults between the ages of 15 and 49 being 20.1%. In addition, 1,100 000 children are orphaned as a result of the pandemic while in late 2006, one fifth of the population was living with the disease.

However, those infected and affected by the condition in Zimbabwe face agonizing deaths as they fail to gain full access to treatment.

It is important to note that, in a country where the inflation rate stands at more than 14,000% there is indeed a danger that policy makers tend to overlook the plight of HIV positive individuals yet they have a right to receive medication and any other assistance they might require. With the ever increasing prices and continued shortage of commodities, it has become difficult for those affected and infected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic to obtain basic commodities. This problem coupled with poverty, a crumbling health sector and malnutrition, has contributed immensely to the majority of the victims passing off early. To worsen the situation, this is happening at a time when there is mass exodus of health professionals such as doctors and nurses who are leaving the country in search of greener pastures.

Anti Retrovirals continue to be a problem as they are in short supply in Zimbabwe. It is estimated that Zimbabweans in need of ARVs are more than 300,000 yet the Ministry of Health reported that, by the end of 2006, it had only 40,000 patients on the program.

The government opened up the market allowing private companies to produce ARVs. This move coupled with inadequate control mechanisms by the government, has led to the proliferation of fake drugs on the black market, a situation which could prove detrimental to the health and well being of those infected by the pandemic. The government has thus failed to protect the infected exposing them to greater risk.

The three percent AIDS levy collected through the National Aids Council (NAC) from the working people of Zimbabwe, is meant to subsidize the cost of drugs yet it seems to be doing little to ease the situation. The money, which is meant to help HIV patients, is sometimes being used to help influential members of society who can afford to buy their own ARVs. SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe in June 2006 alleged that ARVs that are supposed to be provided free at public hospitals are being diverted to private chemists, where they are sold at exorbitant prices.

In the Coalition's view, government must operate in a transparent manner where the NAC and provincial hospitals are audited. There must be put in place a multi-faceted national strategy that protects the underprivileged and vulnerable people, including those affected by HIV and AIDS. The distribution of ARVs should be conducted in a transparent manner and government must be accountable to tax payers who are contributing to the HIV/Aids levy from their paltry salaries.

Government's failure to embrace democratic governance has resulted in poor funding of HIV/Aids programmes in the country. Humanitarian Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) have halted operations in Zimbabwe owing to the suffocating environment, which has brought a negative impact on the poor. According to United Nations Children's Educational Fund (UNICEF), the average amount of international funding in Southern Africa per annum is $74 per person. UNICEF further reports that Zambia, which has a similar HIV prevalence rate, is awarded US$187 per person on an annual basis while in Zimbabwe, the figure stands at a paltry $4. The World Health Organization (WHO) statistics, 13% of those in need of ARVs in Zambia are catered for while in Botswana 50% have access to the drugs.

Every individual regardless of their status have a right to health. The government should work at addressing the plight of those affected and infected by the virus as opposed to their stance of watching while they continue to suffer.

Visit the Crisis in Zimbabwe fact sheet

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