Eastern province records reduction in HIV/AIDS prevalence

Eastern Province has recorded a decrease in the HIV/AIDS prevalence rate from 14 per cent to about 10.3 percent.
According to the Zambian demographic health survey of 2007, the male HIV prevalence rate is at nine point five percent while that of the female prevalence is at eleven point nine percent.

Chadiza district administrative officer Gertrude Zulu revealed this during the commemoration of the National Voluntary Counselling and Testing Day that was commemorated at Chanida Basic School in Chadiza yesterday.

Ms Zulu however, expressed her sadness that the uptake of VCT services in Zambia was still unacceptable low.

She said despite government’s efforts to make VCT services widely available only one point five million people out of the population of thirteen million people have undergone Voluntary Counselling and Testing.

Ms Zulu said it was sad to note that despite the reduction in the prevalence rate Chadiza district still had a high rate of about eight point nine percent.

The District Administrative officer has since called on the District Aids Task Force and the District Health office to take a leading role in mobilising partners and the community to take up preventive actions and also to fight stigma and discrimination.

Meanwhile, chief Mlolo of the Chewa speaking people in Chadiza district has commended government for creating a platform that give opportunities to the community to increased access and awareness to information about the preventive measures of HIV/AIDS.

Chief Mlolo said National VCT day was vital as it plays a leading role in the HIV response and that it was also in line with the global effect to accelerate HIV/AIDS prevention.

The traditional ruler has thanked President Rupiah Banda for continuing with the policy that allowed people living with HIV/AIDS to continue accessing ARVs for free.

He said the policy was good because a number of people could have died as they could not have afforded to purchase the ARVs at K 40, 000.

And a Health expert in Kapiri Mponshi has advised residents in the area utilise the free Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) services in the area to know their HIV/AIDS status.

Ms. Lubasi Inonge, the area District VCT Coordinator, said government and its cooperating partners have made sure that free VCT services are easily accessible to the people in the area.

However, Ms Lubasi expressed her disappointment that the community was reluctant to utilise the services at their door step for them to know their status.

She said this during the commemoration of the World VCT Day yesterday under the theme: Get tested today, get tested together in district.

Ms. Lubasi said all the 24 Rural Health Centers (RHC), the new Kapiri District Hospital and several NGO were providing VCT services to the people in the district.

“ The VCT services are widely available in the district but we are concerned with low utilization of these sites by the people despite collaborative efforts between government and NGOs to bring the service as close to the people as possible,” she observed.

And District HIV/AIDS Task Force (DATF), Vice Chairperson, Francis Mwape has implored all stakeholders in the fight against HIV/AIDS in the district to collaborate in order to reduce the prevalence rate of the pandemic.

Mr. Mwape said the HIV/AIDS prevalence which stood at 14.8 percent in the district was still too high and needed to be reduced.

He said partners should work together and devise new and more effective ways of fighting the disease in the area.

The commemoration in Kapiri Mposhi was held at Kawama Market where the Ministry of Health (MoH) and several civil organisations offered VCT services and disseminated information on treatment, care and support for people living with HIV/AIDS.

During the same function Treatment Advocacy and Literacy Campaign (TALC), disseminated and handed over a report on research findings on the participatory budget, monitoring and resource tracking on Anti Retroviral Therapy (ART) in Zambia.

The research study was conducted by a consortium of stakeholders in the HIV/AIDS sector in three selected districts namely Kapiri Mposhi, Mongu and Lusaka.

The research was aimed at producing evidence on budget allocations and expenditure regarding ART in order to influence decisions by government and its cooperating partners to increase financing towards HIV treatment in Zambia.

And presenting the research findings, Central Province TALC Coordinator, Winter Musonda said there was need to increase the number and spreading out of ART sites in the country to make the service more accessible to HIV/AIDS clients.

Mr. Musonda noted that many HIV/AIDS clients were failing to access treatment because of the long distances they have to cover to the nearest ART site adding that this was further resulting in non adherence and lack of fore up for their treatment.

“most health facilities, especially those in rural areas providing ART services are failing to cope with the demand in terms of infrastructure and patients wait long hours or even days to see a clinician at designated ART centers,” Mr. Musonda said.

ZANIS