More feature stories on Zimbabwe

Empowering people with hearing impairments: a step towards three zeros: 09 August 2012|; When Marwei (24) became pregnant she could not disclose her condition due to cultural taboos associated with pregnancy out of wedlock in Zimbabwe. To make her situation worse she was born with a speech and hearing impairment. Marwei died at age 25 neglected at her mother’s rural homestead. She never disclosed who had made her pregnant. Negative traditional beliefs leave people with disabilities unprotected from abuse by family members, relatives and other sexual predators. To make the situation worse people with hearing and speech impairments are often left out in HIV programmes.

Investing into the future- Ending AIDS through eliminating new HIV infections among children in Zimbabwe: 03 August 2012|; Zimbabwe’s government through the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare (MoHCW) and the National AIDS Council (NAC) is working with various partners at the community level to prevent mother- to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT). The Zimbabwe National AIDS Strategic Plan II (2011-2015) prioritises PMTCT and aims to reduce the rate of mother to child transmission from 14% in 2010 to 7% in 2013 and less than 5% by 2015.

UNAIDS highlights Zimbabwe’s progress in responding to AIDS: 28 May 2012|; UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé concluded his first official visit to Zimbabwe on 25 May after meeting with President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan R. Tsvangirai to highlight the country’s progress in the AIDS response.

Launch of African women’s leadership network aims to advance gender equality and AIDS response: 24 May 2012|; Leading African women from national ministries and parliaments, the business community, networks of women living with HIV, and civil society and development organizations are in Zimbabwe’s capital to attend the inaugural meeting of the GlobalPOWER Women Network Africa. This women-led initiative will provide a strategic political platform to accelerate HIV prevention and sexual and reproductive health and rights responses for women and girls in sub-Saharan Africa.

Innovative WFP electronic voucher programme in Zimbabwe brings relief to many living with HIV: 27 April 2012|; Thousands of people living with HIV in Zimbabwe are no longer going hungry thanks to a creative intervention spearheaded by the World Food Programme. The project, which involves households receiving electronic vouchers that can be used to buy highly nutritious food, is proving a lifeline to people living with HIV.

Men playing a role in eliminating new HIV infections among children and keeping mothers alive: 21 March 2012|; Sitting on a traditional stool at a Dare—a special meeting platform—Chief Chiveso of Mashonaland Central Province in Zimbabwe speaks to men about the possibility of having babies born HIV free and keeping their mothers alive. For that to happen, stresses the Chief, there is a need to challenge harmful cultural and religious practices that can affect community responses to HIV.

Zimbabwe: AIDS levy generates new resources for treatment: 21 February 2012|; An additional 70 000 Zimbabweans living with HIV will get access to anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment by the end of 2012, using the country’s National AIDS Trust Fund. This announcement by the Zimbabwe National AIDS Council is a welcome sign for a country that has some 1.2 million adults and children living with HIV in 2009.

‘Young People We Care' volunteers assist vulnerable households in Zimbabwe: 24 August 2011|; Across Zimbabwe thousands of young people are offering help, support and company to many elderly people who have lost sons and daughters to AIDS-related illnesses. The UNICEF initiative, ‘Young People We Care,’ is seen as a successful way of bringing together the young and old in the AIDS response.

Zimbabwe: an HIV prevention success story: 15 March 2011|; HIV prevalence in Zimbabwe has declined remarkably in recent years, dropping from 26% to 14% between 1997 and 2009. In a recent edition of the journal PLoS Medicine, researchers explored the reasons for this decline and examined what lessons can be learned and replicated.

Empowering women to protect themselves: Promoting the female condom in Zimbabwe: 29 October 2009|; The female condom can be a tool for women’s empowerment, allowing them to protect their own reproductive health and that of their partners. In Zimbabwe, the national AIDS-prevention team, along with UNFPA, have seen their efforts lead to a dramatic increase in female condom use after just three years.

Resources for regular lab tests could be used for HIV treatment: 11 September 2009|; Having 12 children and a very old mother to support, Vincent, middle-aged Ugandan single father living with HIV, knows that his death would spell disaster for the whole family. “If I had died, where would these people go?” said Vincent perched on a stool with his legs outstretched.

In memory of Lynde Francis: HIV activist and beacon of hope: 03 April 2009|; There are some people who leave a mark on you after you have met them and there are some people whose words you hang on to and whose advice you cherish. Lynde was one such person, not only to me but also to many people around the world.

Art for AIDS: A sculptor’s voice: 06 December 2007|; In the second part of a special three part series on Art for AIDS. Zimbabwean sculptor Mike Munyaradzi shares his experiences as an artist and discusses the meaning of his Eradication sculpture and how artists have a role to play in the AIDS response.

Economic security for women key to HIV prevention: 08 March 2006|; A new paper published today by the UNAIDS-led Global Coalition on Women and AIDS (GCWA) shows that when women have an income and a safe place to live, they are much better able to negotiate abstinence, fidelity, and safer sex. Economic security, the paper stresses, is a major factor in enabling women to protect themselves from HIV.

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