University of Zambia Medical Library

"Impact of TB." By Speedwell Mupuchi
The Post, March 25, 2002

March 25, 2002 The breakdown in health services, the spread of the HIV/AIDS and multi-drug resistance have worsened the impact of TB, World Health Organisation (WHO) has noted. WHO disease prevention and control adviser Dr. Eddie Limbambala said in Lusaka yesterday during the commemoration of the World TB day that these factors had contributed to high rise of the disease in the country.

He said on a global scale the TB epidemic was growing and becoming more dangerous, killing an estimated two million people every year world-wide. "The TB burden in the country is increasing. TB has become a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Zambia," he said. Dr. Limbambala said available statistics of the disease were worrying considering the poverty situation in the country which also impacted in treatment being offered.

"This is as a result of intermittent interruptions in the supply of drugs and shortage of resources for routine services," he said. Health minister Dr. Brian Chituwo officiating at the function said there was a symbiotic relationship between poverty and TB. Dr. Chituwo also said the government had recognised TB as the major cause of death and ill health in many Zambian adults.

"Poverty, which entails poor nutrition or inadequate living conditions and poor basic health system for management of TB cases all contribute to the spread of TB and its negative impact upon the communities,"Dr. Chituwo observed. He also said the high incidence of tuberculosis in many poor countries including Zambia meant a sick labour force, extra strain on limited health services and shackled economic growth.

Health permanent secretary Dr. Gavin Silwamba said TB treatment in Zambia will be free from diagnosis, laboratory tests and medication. National AIDS/STD/TB council director Dr. Golden Bolla said close to 35 million people are expected to die from TB by the year 2020 if nothing is done to fight it.

He said there was need for political will and finances to fight the deadly disease which he said had increased dramatically since 1985. "Without political commitment, TB, hunger, HIV/AIDS will never be controlled," he said.

"The Church Gears Up Its Fight Against AIDS ." By Webster Malido
The Post, March 17, 2002

The three Church mother bodies in the country have set up a task force to fight the HIV/AIDS pandemic. According to resolutions passed at their just ended conference in Lusaka, the Zambia Episcopal Conference (ZEC), Christian Council of Zambia (CCZ) and the Evangelical Council of Zambia (EFZ) agreed to act as a bridge between the Church and other non-governmental organisations.

The task force is expected to come up with a declaration which will be used to formulate a common way forward in the fight against HIV/AIDS. The task force will be headed by Dr. Dick Tembo from ZEC while members include Juliet Sichilongo also from ZEC, Reverend Siwila and a Simwanza both from CCZ. Other members are Pastor Nkonge and Kafulila from EFZ including Reverend Mubanga and Pastor Musonda representing other categories.

Meanwhile, the mother bodies have resolved to engage in several activities aimed at preventing HIV within the Church. As for the CCZ, the Church is encouraged to train people in psycho social counselling and encourage voluntary testing at all levels. The CCZ is also calling on the Church to use the press in sensitising people on the risks of unsafe sex as well as discourage some traditional beliefs such as cleansing and dry sex. The CCZ is further encouraging the use of condoms as an alternative to abstinence for discordant couples and those living with HIV/AIDS.

The EFZ is encouraging the use of condoms but only among married couples. "The pulpit should be used to break the silence on the issue of HIV/AIDS," the resolutions read in part. "A syllabus should have practical involvement by the Church, definition of HIV, condoms, no compromise on moral issues, think tank to brainstorm."

As for the ZEC, their feeling is that condoms have a place in marriage as related to HIV/AIDS but that this position would have to be discussed at the next meeting in May. They are also calling for the intensification of campaigns especially through sermons and sex education. ZEC committed itself to provide information on HIV to the Church including advocacy of gender roles and sexual satisfaction.

"The Church and HIV/AIDS (editorial)."
The Post, March 21, 2002

There's an urgent need to awaken to the social conscience and customs regarding sexual values and practices in Zambia. We believe that this is indispensable to the forming of a realistic perception of the sexual values and practices that may impact heavily on the spread of HIV/AIDS and other diseases related to sex.

The coming together of Zambia's three Church mother bodies to set up a task force to fight the HIV/AIDS pandemic will give a great impetus to this war. There's an agent need for the Church to formulate a common way forward in the fight against HIV/AIDS and come up with practical activities aimed at preventing HIV within and outside the Church. It is also encouraging to see the Church initiating programmes that will help sensitise people on the risks of unsafe sex as well as discourage some traditional beliefs such as cleansing and dry sex.

And the Church's intention to start training programmes in psycho social counselling and promoting voluntary testing at all levels deserves the greatest support of all, including the government. The CCZ's encouragement of the use of condoms as an alternative to abstinence for discordant couples and those living with HIV/AIDS is a very welcome policy change - even if it is only limited to married couples.

And ZEC's willingness to discuss the issues of condoms, a matter on which they had taken a more or less rigid stand, is highly welcome. The pulpit should be used to break the silence on the issue of HIV/AIDS.

There's need for the Church to intensify its campaigns against HIV/AIDS, especially through sermons and sex education. The issue of AIDS and ways of dealing with it have been, for very understandable reasons, very difficult for the Church. But throughout history, the Church has demonstrated its experience, its wisdom and its capacity to adapt to reality and deal with very complex problems that humanity has faced.

As we have pointed out before, the Church must have had some very difficult trials, from the time Galileo was condemned to the nuclear age and space flights, theories on the origin of the galaxies, the laws of evolution, and the advances made in modern biology. But the theologians always came up with some explanations, new religious concepts were developed and steps were taken to adapt the Church to the major political, economic and social changes, and scientific discoveries that have taken place in the world.

Now, too, over HIV/AIDS the Church is going through some very difficult trials and must make some important changes. Clearly, the Church is taking more interest in the HIV/AIDS pandemic now. The ideas being expressed on this problem now are more different from the ones that were held say ten years or so ago - major changes, albeit not enough, are being made. And without promoting ideas or standards that depart from the principles or the theological ideas of the Church, we feel it is necessary for the Church to approach the important problems of our time, like HIV/AIDS, realistically. The Church's strong moral stand has so far eclipsed the urgent need to advance basic measures which would protect people from HIV/AIDS.

There's no way the Church can maintain, for a long time, what appears to be an unrealistic approach to a pandemic that has killed more than a million Zambians in its fifteen-year history, continues to kill about 100,000 each year and has left behind half a million orphans. It would be unrealistic for the Church to pretend to be unaware of what was happening around it. Our teenage girls get pregnant every year, evidence that they are having unprotected sex. The Church that preaches abstinence and self purity before marriage is also known to bless marriages where the bride leaves the altar and goes straight to the labour ward.

We see the possibility of conflicts of conscience between the need to control the spread of HIV/AIDS - for if this is not done there will be terrible consequences in our country, sooner or later - and the Church's traditional position on the use of condoms. We think the Church should take a realistic, rational, reasonable position on this problem that has so many political, economic, social and even moral implications.

The number of people who die from AIDS everyday and number of children that are orphaned by this pandemic must be taken into consideration. We can't imagine a worse fate, and we can't afford to wait for centuries for people to acquire sophisticated moral notions such as sexual abstinence and to follow them with the inflexibility and discipline of a convent. It isn't realistic. No theology, religion, or Church can ignore this tragedy. If the Church doesn't have a theory on how - technically, scientifically, and socially - to control the spread of HIV/AIDS it should at least have a rational moral theory on how to stop its spread.

"Traditional Healers and AIDS cures."
The Post, March 24, 2002

The Traditional Healers Association of Zambia (THAZ) should find ways of punishing its members who are misleading their patients that they can be cured of HIV/AIDS by having sex with children, the Child Care and Adoption Society of Zambia has demanded.

In a statement last week, Association vice-president Richard Chella called on THAZ president Rodwell Vongo to ensure that erring members were brought to book to protect the children. "Others are being advised that if they slept with the same children they will gain promotions," Chella said. "This has been extended to foolish parents who have done it to acquire riches." He reminded members of the public that there was no such thing and anyone peddling such lies were simply liars.

Chella has since called for a meeting involving medical doctors, traditional healers including child based non-governmental organisations such as Kenneth Kaunda Children's Foundation, SOS Village, the Department of Social Welfare including his association to address the matter which has reached alarming levels. He further expressed worry about the increase in the rising numbers of orphaned children as a result of HIV/AIDS pandemic, a situation he described as catastrophic.

"Kaunda Urges Churches to Step Up Fight Against HIV." By Joe Kaunda
The Post, March 15, 2002

Christian churches and other religions have been inadequate in the struggle against HIV/AIDS, first republican president Dr. Kenneth Kaunda has said. In a key note address at a meeting of the Zambia Episcopal Conference, Christian Council of Zambia and the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia held at Ndola's Savoy Hotel yesterday, Dr. Kaunda observed that the religious groupings had not done enough in the fight against the spread of HIV/AIDS.

"Indeed a recent report by the World Council of Churches has concluded that the response of Christian churches and other religions has been inadequate in the struggle against AIDS," Dr. Kaunda said. He told the meeting that the latest HIV/AIDS are alarming and frightening.

Quoting the latest United Nations HIV/AIDS report, Dr. Kaunda said there are 245 million people living with HIV in the Sub Saharan region alone "... and yet, at the same time, we are also told that it is also part of the world where religious beliefs are particularly strong," Dr. Kaunda said. He said this meant that there are different approaches by different religions towards those infected by HIV/AIDS.

"There are those who believe that HIV/AIDS infected people are sinners and should be left to die because the wages of sin is death," he said. He observed that many faith-based organisations are present in almost every community and play an important role in the emotional social and spiritual aspects of many of our people's lives.

He, however, stated that when it comes to the battle against HIV/AIDS, the public was yet to see more action from religious organisations. Dr. Kaunda regretted that for most societies especially in sub-Saharan Africa, discussion on HIV/AIDS remained a taboo subject between parents and children or even in seminars including religious conferences where its discussion was considered as beyond comprehension.

He said many religious organisations believe that breaking the wall of silence over HIV/AIDS will increase risk behaviour amongst young people. "...that it encourages risk behaviour outside marriage and that above all it is a catalyst for young people to get into unruly behaviour at an early stage of their lives," Dr. Kaunda said.

"Let us listen to social scientists. These researchers tell us that education on HIV/AIDS does not result in increased risk behaviour but rather leads to its decrease. In other words awareness is one of the main means of checking the spread of HIV/AIDS." He said HIV/AIDS demands that Christians re-affirm their faith in Christ, and that through him, love conquers death. He advised participants at the meeting to see HIV/AIDS as the call of our time to reach out in compassion and love to those who suffer.

He outlined the challenges ahead of the churches as increasing numbers of people living with or affected by HIV, who are ceaselessly seeking counselling and support, increasing numbers of children needing support and orphaned by HIV/AIDS including the increasing numbers of deaths amongst younger members of churches. "I urge you to set up HIV/AIDS action groups in every locality and community. I also urge you to set up home based care and support for orphans and those affected by HIV/AIDS," Dr. Kaunda said. He said this move should be easy to set up because they are based on the Christian values of spiritual and physical care for others.

He further urged the church bodies to break the wall of silence by openly encouraging discussions on HIV/AIDS which should include pre-marriage counselling, youth groups and confirmation classes, faith-based publications and radio programmes, education at religious health facilities including in-training programmes for religious and lay leaders. Dr. Kaunda further pledged his life's dedication to the fight against the AIDS scourge. "I have founded the Kenneth Kaunda Children of Africa Foundation to help you wage this war," he said and called for increased information on HIV/AIDS to the people. "I think it is right to keep reminding ourselves that Zambia has lost many lives. These include many well trained and experienced young men and women from all professional fields.

They include clergymen and women, they also include the young and the old." He said most of the deceased were very difficult to replace, while their loss has a negative effect on the economy. "In the circumstances, we are left with no choice but to fight....fight... fight, until we win. If we do not or relax, we are destined for extinction," Dr. Kaunda cautioned.

"The entire human race will be wiped out without a gunshot." Dr. Kaunda at the same meeting shared his family's experience when he lost his son, Masuzyo. "Some of you may recall that when my wife and I lost an extremely able young man to AIDS, born on December 23, 1966, - he was 30 and left 6 children for us as a family to look after," Dr. Kaunda said. "I called a press conference at which I announced our great loss to HIV/AIDS."

"20 Years After the Discovery, the HIV/AIDS Challenge Still Hangs." By Kelvin Kachingwe
Times of Zambia, March 18, 2002

2 It is almost two decades ago since the HIV/AIDS was pronounced in Zambia. And ever since, several efforts have been taken to seriously curb this deadly pandemic. But despite all this, very little success seems to have been achieved in as far as reducing the infection rate and offering affordable treatment to the affected and infected.

It is disheartening to learn that out of a population of about 10.2 million people, the national prevalence rate stands at 19.7 per cent among adults aged 15 to 49. Today, over 1,000,000 Zambians, that is about 10 per cent of the total population, are estimated to be living with the virus.

But while so many reasons have been cited for the fueling of the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Zambia such as the high poverty levels, the over burdened health services and the limited resources for prevention and care. And the others being the gender inequality and denial, stigma and discrimination. But such a scenario can only beg the question as to what the challenges have been and why they have not been overcome.

It was only recently that the SWAAZ organised a consultative meeting at Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka to look at the challenges of HIV/AIDS and what should be done to address the pandemic. Professor Nkandu Luo who was presenting a paper on the challenges of HIV/AIDS said the devastating aspects of the pandemic is that it tends to kill young people who are at the heart of economic and social activity. She said this is in direct contrast to the USA scenario where AIDS was until recently the leading cause of death among men in the economically productive age group of 25 to 44, although the prevalence rates of the disease is relatively low in the country.

But with the introduction of anti-retroviral therapy, which has brought down the death rate, it ranks second place after accidental injuries. With such a scenario, most of the participants agreed that the only way to overcome the challenges of HIV/AIDS in Zambia is to have debt relief for the pandemic by the country's multilateral and bilateral lenders.

Policy analyst at Jubilee Zambia Jack Zulu said responding to the challenge of HIV/AIDS is key to the overall development of the countries in the region. Mr Zulu said Jubilee believes that as long as Zambia continues to pay towards the settlement of the external debt owed to the multilateral and bilateral lenders, the country will not be able to address the social problems such as high HIV/AIDS cases, high poverty levels, unemployment levels and the numbers of street kids who are out of school.

"We emphasise that the fundamental principle of debtor protection means that respect for the basic human rights of millions of people should take priority over repayment of debts to comparatively wealthy creditors, especially when the capital on these debts has already been paid through servicing. "The development of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) in Zambia like in many other poor countries, offers a rare opportunity through which funds can be released to fight poverty and HIV/AIDS pandemic," he said.

Mr Zulu said this process enables delivery systems and interventions to be developed in wide consultation with various key stakeholders including the international institutions and civil society. Many participants agreed with Jubilee that the money that goes into debt servicing can be channelled into providing anti-retroviral treatment and drugs for treatment of opportunistic infections.

Prof Luo said the high proportion of HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa, the provision of cost-effective, affordable quality care cannot be over emphasised. She said "the availability of affordable anti-retroviral drugs that prolong the lives of people living with HIV as well as treatment for opportunistic infections becomes a social, economic and political necessity. It also has an ethical and moral ethos around it."

But this provision of affordable anti-retroviral drugs ought to be urgent because of the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS in Zambia. The scourge has literally impacted negatively on individuals, families and the community. And the majority of those infected and affected are in the prime of their productive and reproductive years and sadly in most cases are sole bread winners of a family.

The community has also broken down traditional safety nets for looking after orphans, no wonder there are many street kids. Mrs Bridget Silavwe, an HIV patient said the African society has no orphans but only children. She said she is looking after her late sisters children and does not consider them to be orphans but as her own children. Not only that, the health sector has been overwhelmed because of increased demand for health services as a result of HIV/AIDS. The high mortality among health personnel has only exacerbated the situation.

So what are the challenges for Zambia in as far as HIV/AIDS is concerned. Prof Luo in her paper on the challenges of HIV/AIDS 2002 outlined the following as the main ones

• Sustained political commitment and leadership in the fight against HIV/AIDS
• Good coordination of the national response at policy and programme level, involving governments, NGO's, CBO's and churches.
• Adequate local and external resources to cover the priority areas identified in the national HIV/AIDS strategical plan.
• Persistent, targeted approaches in information, education and communication campaigns and
• Provision of quality social and medical services for HIV/AIDS patients in a continuum of care from the centre to the periphery.

But unless these intervention programmes are aimed at limiting further spread of HIV/AIDS, it is projected that HIV infected persons will increase to 1.1 million by 2010.

"KK's Foundation Embarks On HIV Research." By Brighton Phiri
The Post, March 11, 2002

We want President Levy Mwanawasa to stay for 10 years, Vice-President Enoch Kavindele has said. Responding to concerns raised by Zambezi East UPND member of parliament Maxwell Mukwakwa that President Mwanawasa resigned because of corruption, Vice-President Kavindele said the MMD does not want him to resign now.

Mukwakwa said if President Mwanawasa lived up to his old trend he may be forced to resign because of the high levels of corruption but Vice-President Kavindele maintained he will not. "That is why we are fighting corruption.

We don't want him to resign," Vice-President Kavindele said. "We want him to stay for 10 years." Vice-President Kavindele has in the past indicated his interest to succeed President Mwanawasa after the two terms. During the debate on estimates of expenditure for the Auditor General's Office, Munali FDD member of parliament Edith Nawakwi said the money allocated was little.

Nawakwi said accountability of public resources should be of paramount importance before government spends public resources on other expenditure. She said public accountants would only be accountable if they could report to their respective controlling officers and not coming to Lusaka. Nawakwi also suggested that the Auditor General be given enough powers to prosecute erring accountants.

Mbabala UPND member of parliament Emmanuel Hachipuka said a lot of reports, highlighting financial mismanagement, have been produced by the Auditor General although nothing is ever done. Hachipuka said it was becoming common and a culture not to prosecute despite reports in both the media and the Auditor General's reports. "So many things have been said about us, so many things have been written about us yet we do nothing," said Hachipuka. Luena UPND member of parliament Crispin Sibetta said the public accounts' report for last year should be revisited and be tabled before the House otherwise Zambia would be like a "banana republic" where there are no audited accounts.

Finance minister Emmanuel Kasonde said he was making follow ups on cases of glaring funds misuse. Kasonde said agencies tasked with investigations would make necessary follow ups on culprits.

"Is My Child HIV Positive?" By Mildred Mpundu
Times of Zambia, March 9, 2002

"I thought it was witchcraft or a curse. Why was my son, now seven years old, getting ill all the time from different diseases, yet other children his age seemed to enjoy good health. "One day the doctor asked me if it ever crossed my mind that my child could be HIV positive. He counselled me and advised that an HIV test be done," says one Zambian mother. She feared the worst but she had to know. As the doctor suspected the results of the test were positive. This mother is not alone in this situation.

In Cape Town, South Africa at Nazareth House Children's home for sick and orphaned children and frail adults, the oldest child living with HIV/AIDS is nine years old while the youngest is five weeks old. He, like other children, has fears. He has seen his friends die of AIDS and it has been traumatising for him.

Asked what his wish is, he says, "I wish that I was not HIV positive and that I will not die," Sr Margaret tells us his feelings as no one is allowed to see the children. The children's biggest dream is that they were not HIV positive and that they had families of their own.

Nazareth realises "no matter how much love and care we give our children, we know that the most important family is their mother and father". Visitors are not allowed to see the children for fear of them being traumatised, but are only shown a video of what is happening in the home and in the children's care. This is to protect the children and reduce their agony.

Though the carers take time to counsel the children and explain their status and the consequences, there is a constant reminder of a miniature tombstone in the gardens at the home. It is a place where the children go to pray for their departed colleagues and be reminded that everyone is after all destined to die at one time.

Sister Margaret said the staff try as much as possible to let the children know about their status in a careful manner not to frighten them. The children are told that they do not have to tell anyone about their status, although the older children do not mind talking about it. "Their lives are a lot shorter than ours and we strive to give them the best quality of life in a loving, safe environment while they are with us." "This includes everything from regular medical checkups to hugs, from specialised care to toys, from appropriate education to a goodnight kiss. And where death is inevitable we strive to make the transition as peaceful and as comfortable as possible," Nazareth House said.

Jane Pen, a social worker at the home which I and the Tokyo Peace Boat crew visited and took gifts for the children said the first admission to the home was a three month old HIV/AIDS infected baby in1992. There was no one to look after him and so Sister Margaret and the Sisters of Nazareth took him into the convent (Nazareth House). One hundred years after its establishment, the home looks after 50 children, six of whom are handicapped and the rest are HIV positive.

"Not all the children get sick but we try and care for them when they are physically sick. Sometimes they are hospitalised. Twenty seven of the children go to the local school which goes up to grade four." "Over 60 children have died in our care, but we hope others growing will survive," said Pen. Though the children are sick and have the virus and staff know that they are dying, they try as much as possible to make them happy and let them live a normal child's life. They laugh, cry and play like any other children."

Nazareth House also runs a day care centre for 30 HIV affected and infected babies and offer support to their mothers in Khayelitsha township. The mothers receive counselling for families so that they can live happily in the community. There are also plans to open a hospice and respice centre for mothers and children.

Problems like everywhere else dog the children's home. They do not have financial resources and children have to get drugs for opportunistic infections from the main hospital. They need a lot of medication. government pays the doctors, nurses and other staff caring for the children but sometimes they go the hospital and the house has to pay for their medical care. "The cost of caring for the children is very high. Everyday there is a growing need for money, of buildings and extra room, for toys and others," Sister Margaret said.

Nazareth home receives a small grant from government and usually survives from fundraising activities. "The children have a right to be alive. They are innocent children. It is not their fault and they did not ask for it." "Most gratifying is that when they finally die is that we did what we could for them," said one of the Child care officers.

Some of the children who are in Nazareth House are orphaned while others were abused and came into the home with TB, syphillis and mostly HIV/AIDS. Apart from caring for the children Nazareth home strives to do regular aids awareness education in schools, churches and informal groups. This is done so that not only will the incidence of HIV hopefully, decrease, but so that people with the virus will be perceived with more understanding and compassion.

Many children around the world, including Zambia go through pain all their lives. Worse still the agony the mother who spends most of her time with the sick child goes through is immeasurable. With the high HIV/AIDS infection rates of 40 percent among pregnant women in Zambia, the risk of giving birth to HIV positive babies is also high. Unlike in South Africa there are no specific homes for looking after HIV infected children in Zambia.

The Mother To Child Transmission (MTCT} programme at the University Teaching Hospital and other health centres is trying to reduce the rate of infection from mothers to children. The Kenneth Kaunda Children of Africa Foundation (KKCAF} in Lusaka, Zambia looks after 100 orphaned children.

Programme Director for the foundation, Dr Waza Kaunda says there is nothing formal in terms of taking care of HIV/AIDS positive children for good reasons. "When children are isolated, they are stigmatised and will not grow up with a right frame of mind. It is not correct to create institutions for them. Our vision as the KK foundation is to let children be taken care of in normal family environment," said Dr Waza.

Instead, the foundation places great emphasis on nutrition and medical care for the children, whether HIV positive or not. There is no discrimination. Children are treated equally and the results, Dr Waza said are tremendous. "The approach should be good nutrition. If given high protein diet of soya and vitamin supplements children can live a healthy normal life." "Since this programme was introduced at the KK foundation, the rate of admission for children has gone down and they have gained weight He said if the children need medical help we should be able to meet their needs as some with proper care will live for many years.

The doctor who runs a clinic for the orphaned children and adults as well advised that hospitals should start to specialise in such issues for children; and MTCT programmes must be encouraged. KK foundation clinic has the capacity to take care of the children if they fall ill and not to put labels on them. "It is important that we address the issue of AIDS not just as NGOs but government too.

And Patron of the International Physicians for the prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW}, former President for Zambia Dr Kenneth Kaunda said that "AIDS was a terrifying problem, yet one we must win." "Its either we fight and win or AIDS will fight us and win," Dr Kaunda told participants to a Regional IPPNW conference in Lusaka last week. He said though HIV/AIDS had no borders and was not one thing that we would want to deal with in normal situations "prevention is better than cure," and would go a long way towards eliminating the problem.

It is important, said the former head of state, to do our own (African} research to see what can be done to fight and win the battle on AIDS. Poverty, he said is one of the problems that also needed to be eliminated. So far, the KK foundation have set up four schools, though without facilities and resources, for the purpose of imparting knowledge and skills to people in agriculture, bricklaying and others.

During the IPPNW conference it was observed that conflict also accelerated the problem of HIV/AIDs and diseases of poverty in children. Dr Olupot Olupot of IPPNW, Uganda said that women and children exposed to sex, rape, prostitution and pregnancy suffered the most. Sixty percent of HIV/AIDS infected children were found in Southern Africa.

Paul Saoke of Kenya said that sometimes young girls are abducted and assigned to male combatants where they get pregnant. "While it is clear that they gave birth and continue to give birth in unsanitary conditions, the rate of HIV/AIDS among them would obviously be high, but may remain unknown due to lack of access to them. Many children born to these child mothers are likely to be born with HIV if their mothers were HIV positive," he said.

In Zambia a research done by Project Concern International, reveals that street children as young as twelve years old reported having had a sexually transmitted disease. The gravest long term impact of HIV/AIDS is on children.

Due to a number of factors such as poverty, drugs, peer pressure and others children are at risk of contracting the HIV virus. Sara Wilson, reports in an International Food Policy Research Institution (IFPRI} that UNICEF works to improve orphan registration efforts and to promote the right of HIV/AIDS children to stay in school. She says according to Daphne Topouzis, a consultant specialising in HIV and agriculture and rural development, international agencies have focused their efforts on research. "Its very hard to generalise, but it is certain that they have done more on their research side than on practical mitigation efforts," she says.

Is there something more that can be done to prevent more children getting the virus? What kind of support is being given to mothers and their children living with HIV/AIDS? Time to take action to save the future leadership from extinction is now.

"I'm Touched With the Rate of HIV Infection." By Brighton Phiri
The Post, March 9, 2002

I am touched with the rate of HIV/AIDS infection in Zambia, First Lady Maureen Mwanawasa (above) said yesterday. Speaking when Parmalat Zambia Limited donated K20 million worth of cheques to three local organisations involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS, First Lady Maureen said the country's rate of HIV infection was worrying.

"Even those of us who are married are not safe anymore," Maureen said. "Nowadays it is either you are infected, affected or at risk." She said it was high time Zambians removed the HIV/AIDS stigma among themselves. Maureen said society should accept the fact that HIV/AIDS was with it. She asked government to come up with programmes that would empower women economically because it was lack of funds for survival that led women into sexual business.

Maureen said government needed to create an environment where women could have access to resources. "The government must take another step forward to ensure that the Anti-retroviral drugs are available to all the people," she said.

Parmalat managing director Hennie Trollip said HIV/AIDS was a major challenge to both the public and social economic development of the country. HIV/AIDS had brought great suffering not only to Zambians but also all the global economies.

"It is therefore, imperative for all of us, politically, religious, business, Non-Governmental Community, district leaders and all others, individually and collectively to do our part to change the course of this debilitating epidemic and move Zambia towards a healthy and threat free future," Trollip said. And operator for Rainbow Project, an AIDS based NGO, Harold Ndhlovu, said the entire civil society should team up and find an answer to increased numbers of orphans and vulnerable children in the country.

Parmalat contributed K5 million each to Christian Advisor Health of Kafue and Network of Zambian People Living with HIV/AIDS while Ndola based Rainbow Project received a K10 million cheque.

"Drugs Watchdog Stresses Need to Test Traditional Cures."
Times of Zambia, March 6, 2002

Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) chairman Dr Simon Miti says there is need to quickly find public funding to conduct clinical trials on herbal and traditional medicines to confirm their validity.

Dr Miti said in Lusaka yesterday that the herbal medicines included Professor Shengxun Tian's Immunity Booster, which is acclaimed of reversing HIV symptoms. Dr Miti who also the Central Board of Health (CBoH) director general said conducting clinical trials for herbal and traditional medicines was in accordance with internationally recognised guidelines. He said clinical trials needed to be conducted to determine the efficacy of the traditional drugs.

"There is no doubt that plant medicines have potential of improving public health and lowering health care cost but there is need to rework the current research clinical trials guidelines," Dr Miti said.

Prof Tian expressed gratitude at the Government's response to his Immunity booster and hoped the Government would soon find the money to determine the efficacy of his drug. "In his speech at Parliament President Mwanawasa stressed the need to support initiatives that reduced the spread of the deadly HIV/AIDS and that was really encouraging," he said. Prof Tian claims that he has found the cure for the deadly HIV/AIDS disease but his medicine has yet to be subjected to thorough clinical trials.

"Budget and AIDS." By S.H. Siwale
The Post, February 26, 2002

HIV/AIDS will and must surely be on the mind of the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning as he prepares the budget for fiscal year 2002. There are several reasons for this. HIV/AIDS was an election issue in the December 27, elections and secondly.

Emmanuel Kasonde is the immediate past Chairman of the National HIV/AIDS/STD/TB Council. As past chairman of the National HIV/AIDS Council he must have agonized and formed some ideas on how Zambia must respond to this devastating socioeconomic imperative. As minister in charge of Economic Planning he must also take a long-time view of HIV/AIDS on the economic development and perspectives of Zambia. While the Minister of Finance is not concerned with the details of budgeting for any sector, organisation or ministry he will certainly have to take a number of measures that promote national response and action against HIV/AIDS.

This will be necessary because HIV/AIDS threatens the very raison dietre and, the objective of Zambia's economic development. So the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning will have to adequately fund HIV/AIDS preventive services bearing in mind that prevention is more cost effective than curative services but moreso because there is no cure yet for HIV/AIDS.

PREVENTION
This will be mainly prevention of HIV transmission in clinical settings. Adequate funds to the Ministry of Health and grant aided hospitals so as to purchase adequate disposable syringes, needles, gloves and other protective requisites. Adequate funds are necessary to purchase adequate drugs to treat sexually transmitted infections. EDUCATION AND INFORMATION Education and information for HIV/AIDS prevention are so far the only most effective and practical mechanisms for HIV/AIDS transmission control. Unfortunately education and information for HIV/AIDS control has not brought about the necessary behaviour changes.

So far the most effective education and information programmes are those where these have been targeted and are consistent and persistent. The Ministries of Education, Information and Broadcasting should play lead roles. Concerned and relevant NGOs will give their support.

TREATMENT
As everyone knows there is no cure, as yet, for HIV/AIDS. In this case treatment refers to management of the condition, opportunistic infections and sexually transmitted infections. Treatment of opportunistic and sexually transmitted infection is well known and accepted. What remains controversial is making antiretroviral drugs publicly available. The controversy over ARVs for us in Zambia is futile. Politically the Zambian people were categorical about confronting HIV/AIDS with all resources at the country's disposal. Public health principles and practice indicate that no disease can be controlled without treatment or cure.

The death rates estimated at 40 per 1000 Zambians aged 30-40 are too high for us to have the luxury to debate the scientific merits, the economic implications of bringing in ARV's. We are a country at war and no resource should be spared to fight this war and win it.

It is more expensive to do nothing than to do something. If ARVs can prolong one's productive life by 10 years then the economy stands to gain directly and indirectly. In any case, the price of generic ARVs has come down to $30 per person per month for a cocktail of three ARVs with imaginative and innovative financing mechanisms such as pool purchasing or bulk purchasing the costs could come down even lower.

MOTHER TO CHILD TRANSMISSION
It is estimated that 25 per cent of pregnant women are HIV positive and 40 per cent of babies born to HIV positive mothers are infected with the HIV virus. In our country experience shows that about 50 per cent decrease in transmission is obtained using one single dose of a drug called Nevirapine at an estimated cost of less than $1. The efficacy of this regime has been demonstrated at home and abroad.

It will be morally, economically and ethically unacceptable to continue to deny HIV mothers this cost effective treatment for mothers reached by maternal health services. The medical fraternity in South Africa has taken its Government to court over this matter. We need not come to that situation in Zambia.

THE BUDGET
How would I expect the Minister of Finance and Development Planning respond to HIV/AIDS pandemic in his budget?

• Allocate enough funds to the Ministry of Health and all Church health institutions so as to practice safe medicine, surgery obstetrics/gynecology, blood transfusion and immunizations.
• Enough funds to supply medicines for the treatment of sexually transmitted diseases, tuberculosis and opportunistic infections.
• Allocate enough funds to Ministries of Health, Education, Information and Broadcasting for intensive, focused HIV/AIDS education and information.
• Allocate enough funds to antipoverty programmes, especially through job creation measures.
• Allocate funds for public procurement of anti retrovirals but because government cannot provide all the drugs needed for the many of our nationals who are HIV positive, in addition tax incentives be given to corporate bodies that create mechanisms for provisions of HIV/AIDS services for their workers.
• The Minister of Finance should provide through the National HIV/AIDS/TB/STD Council funds for creation of local revaluing funds for HIV/AIDS control activities. Funds should be provided to community care groups on grant basis to make these groups effectively operational.

The above proposals may seem pedestrian and too detailed for the consideration of the Minister of Finance and Economic Development but unless the minister sees the trees he might not see the forest, in the same way that he sees the microeconomic vis a vis Macroeconomic parameters, we may miss the point. The budget must be the measure of our government's commitment to the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Zambia is at war and no effort or resource should be spared to fight the HIV/AIDS war. In the final analysis, the proportion of Zambia's budget allocated and spent on fighting HIV/AIDS should be an overall indicator of our country's commitment to fight the scourge.

"Guard Against HIV/AIDS Spread- DA."
The Times of Zambia, February 21, 2002

A government official has cautioned Zambians against relying on AIDS drugs because the search for a cure is still on. Kasama District Administrator Nathan Ilunga said that anti-retro-viral drugs being developed by scientists and researchers were merely meant to suppress the activity of the AIDS virus and were not reliable cure.

Mr Ilunga said this when he flagged off an HIV/AIDS human rights awareness walk. He said some people pretended that AIDS was as normal as any other disease and refused to change their lifestyles. "This makes it difficult for those fighting the spread of the scourge to easily succeed in their efforts," Mr Ilunga said.

He implored young people to guard against contracting the deadly disease because there was no known cure. "I urge you to use all means possible of creating awareness such as walks." He said youths were the window of hope for Zambia's future of and hence the need to remain healthy and AIDS-free.

The walk led by the United Church of Zambia boys and girls brigades band from St. Luke's congregation included the Young Women Christian association and Kasama girls high school pupils. Organisers included the Network of Zambian people living with HIV/AIDS and other non-governmental organisations within the Health ministry.

"Be Neutral, KK Urges Anti-AIDS Groups." By Monica Mayuni
The Times of Zambia, February 18, 2002

Monday, First president Kenneth Kaunda has appealed to all Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS to remain non partisan if they have to work effectively. And Lions Club members across Africa donated over US $2,520 towards the Kenneth Kaunda Children Foundation of Africa in the fight against AIDS.

Dr Kaunda said this over the weekend during a banquet held in his honour by the International Association of Lions Clubs in Lusaka. He observed that NGOs that indulged in both politics and social work did not perform to the expected standards. He also urged Lions Club members across Africa to become united and work for the betterment of the continent.

He vowed not to give up on his mission to help the orphans whose parents died from AIDS because he understood the pain they went through. "Let us work in unison. You should join me in the fight against the AIDS pandemic. "I lost my son in 1986. I went through great pain when I learnt that my son died from AIDS; since then, I joined the crusade of people fighting against the pandemic," he said.

Dr Kaunda said he was humbled when he received an invitation to be the guest of honour from the Lions International. He also pledged to account for all the money that had been given to reflect his responsibility. And Lions International director Sumant Amin said he was impressed with Dr Kaunda 's decision to quit active politics and focus on fighting the pandemic that has affected more than half the population of the African continent.

The banquet was held after the seventh All Africa conference of the International Associations of Lions Clubs which was held at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre. Members from all African countries attended the conference whose main agenda was to make plans to focus on their new calendar year which starts in June.

Government has called on NGOs and the church to educate the people on HIV/AIDS issues, reports VERONICA KAHONDA. Southern Province Minister George Mpombo said the church and NGOs should involve themselves to teach the public on the dangers of HIV/AIDS and how to protect themselves. Mr Mpombo said the fight against the pandemic would be more effective if NGOs and churches sensitised their members because it would be easy to listen to them. He said this in an interview with the Mail in Livingstone over the weekend.

Government wanted to maintain maximum standards of health in the country. Livingstone had the highest levels of HIV/AIDS in Livingstone because of illegal lodges that had mushroomed in the city and the whole province. Mr Mpombo said illegal lodges were the ones contributing to the pandemic because people preferred going out to hidden places and involve themselves in especially sex. Mr Mpombo said the State police will move in to make sure the trend was reversed.

He said as government, they wanted to maintain high standards and forge ahead in development.

"Play Leading Role, Churches Told ."
The Times of Zambia, February 14, 2002

Central Province Minister Gunston Chola has urged the church to play a leading role in dealing with issues affecting the community, especially the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Mr Chola said the HIV/AIDS problem was serious and required a vigorous awareness campaign within the community.

He was speaking on Tuesday night during a Zambian cultural night organised by the United Church of Zambia (UCZ) in honour of delegates attending a five-day council for World Mission Africa regional consultative forum in Kabwe.

"I commend the United Church of Zambia for coming up with such a programme because the church is expected to play a leading role in the fight against various problems affecting the community," Mr Chola said.

He noted that the church had taken a proactive stance by initiating business ideas which could uplift the social and economic welfare of people and religious organisations. He said it was gratifying that the church had become a partner in culture promotion. Religious organisations were better-placed in promoting culture because they were closer to the community.

And speaking earlier UCZ general secretary Silishebo Silishebo said UCZ enjoyed a mutual relationship with Government in sectors which included education health and agriculture. Reverend Silishebo said in agriculture, UCZ had introduced a course for mentally-retarded people at the Chipembi agricultural training centre in Chibombo district. This would assist the neglected people who are retarded. Delegates were from South Africa, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Botswana.

-Health Minister Brigadier General Brian Chituwo says the fight against the deadly AIDS pandemic will only be won if all the stakeholders involved are well co-ordinated. Dr Chituwo said this in Chisamba yesterday when he officially opened a five-days planning workshop for the national AIDS council (NAC).

"HIV Infection on the Increase Among Women and Girls." By Brighton Phiri
The Times of Zambia, February 12, 2002

HIV/AIDS infections are on the increase among women and girls in Zambia, Women in Law in Southern Africa Research and Education Trust (WLSARET) national co-ordinator Matrine Bbuku Chuulu has said. Kicking off WLSARET's HIV/AIDS research project in Lusaka yesterday, Chuulu expressed concern at high rates of defilement, rape and extra-marital unions in the country.

"It is sad that even after the 20 years of HIV/AIDS, our government has not come up with laws related to HIV/AIDS," she said. Chuulu said it was sad to see cases of defilement and rape being treated as ordinary by the courts in an HIV/AIDS era. Chuulu said the country needed to review its marriage related laws. "These are not rare cases of defilement...We urgently need effective legislation to reduce these threatening rates," she said. Chuulu complained that women and girls were not protected against infections, defilement and rape.

She explained that the three and half years research was aimed at influencing change to AIDS related policies. Chuulu named Kapiri Mposhi, Ndola and Monze as some of the areas where the research would be conducted.

"AIDS Will Affect the Efficient Delivery of Social Security." By Speedwell Mupuchi
The Times of Zambia, February 11, 2002

AIDS will in the long run affect the efficient delivery of social security, National Social Safety Net director Ngosa Chisupa has noted. Chisupa yesterday said AIDS was one of the major challenges the country faces in terms of provision of social securities. He said unless the scourge is rigorously fought, social security benefits will continue to go down. Chisupa said AIDS had affected the public service which is the largest employer in terms of inflows consequently affecting contribution to security schemes. He said there is need to have awareness programmes in the public service.

"If AIDS is not reduced, it will continue to threaten the efficient provision of social securities to the people, because it affects their contribution to pension schemes," Chisupa said. "You can't continue deducting from someone who has died." Chisupa said to offset the AIDS impact on the social securities, there is need to cover the informal sector in order to increase inflows.

He said capturing the informal sector is one way of diversifying investment in social securities. Chisupa said plans were under way to harmonise social security schemes organisations into one body in line with regional social security policy. "Debate in the region is centred on the need to harmonise social securities in member countries," he said. Chisupa said the current arrangement where social public security schemes were centred around organisations affected co-ordination of benefits.

"Kaunda Calls for Concerted Efforts Against HIV/AIDS."
The Times of Zambia, February 6, 2002

Former republican president Kenneth Kaunda has called for concerted efforts among Zambians in the fight against HIV/AIDS if the effects of the disease was to be minimised especially in children.

Speaking when he received a donation of assorted food stuffs and medical drugs from the Lion Club of Fairview on behalf of the Kenneth Kaunda Children Of Africa Foundation (KK-CAF) clinic yesterday, the former President said the plight of children in the country should be protected by all concerned people.

Dr Kaunda said the donated goods to the KK-CAF clinic would ease the operations of the clinic that recently started offering health services and civic education on HIV/AIDS to the local communities. He said Southern Africa had suffered most from the HIV/AIDS epidemic than other parts of the continent as witnessed in the number of orphaned children in the community. "We need to put our efforts together and fight HIV/AIDS in Africa. Charitable organisations such as the Lions should continue serving the people in such a way," Dr Kaunda said.

Dr Kaunda said he was optimistic that the KK-CAF would grow in Zambia and other parts of Africa so as to serve children from the deadly disease. "We have found trained teachers and doctors to assist the organisation in its noble cause of trying to help children," he said.

The former president said already four education centres have been opened in Lusaka while a lot of people have been attended to at the clinic in Villa Elizabeth. And KK-CAF chairman Dr Waza Kaunda said it was important that sufficient drugs were imported in the country so as to enable everyone affected by HIV/AIDS get treatment.

Lions Club of Fairview president Happy Chibesa said as a charitable organisation in the country, they felt obliged to make the donation to the KK-CAF as a way of contributing to the fight against HIV/AIDS. Mr Chibesa said the as a Lions club they were determined to narrow the gap between the privileged and the underprivileged in the country. He said they would always maintain a non-partisan stance in community roles to ensure that people were served equally without any political or religious inclinations or segregation.

"Medics Want To Test Immune Booster."
The Times of Zambia, January 25, 2002

Medical doctors have openly differed over the planned launch of a newly introduced herbal immune booster by AID Action International Limited without locally testing the efficacy of the controversial drug.

The National HIV/AIDS/STD/TB Council has since directed the distributor of the new booster not to offload it on the Zambian market until it is tested locally. The doctors differed during the presentation of the drug in Lusaka by AID Action International Limited director of operations Stewart Cornes from the United States of America.

Dr Cornes explained that the new AID Action mineral booster was considered as a nutritional supplement and did not need to be registered as a drug. Dr Cornes said the product had no side effects and was currently selling in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana, the United Kingdom and it was now being introduced in Zambia.

But many doctors said that the drug should not be allowed on the market until such a time that the product goes through tests to prove its efficacy. The doctors warned that allowing the AID Action HIV/AIDS natural immune booster on the Zambian market would endanger people's lives because local medical authorities had not tested it.

National HIV/AIDS/STD/TB Council Director General Godden Bolla said the worries raised by the medical doctors were valid and that the drug needed to be properly checked to protect lives of people. Dr Bolla said the council was concerned about the increasing number HIV/AIDS drugs, which had hit the market and was seriously monitoring the situation. He said the council had so far registered 13 HIV/AIDS drugs, which were still going under investigations before they could be allowed on the market. "I can assure that if this drug is taken on the market today everyone will go for it to try something new and as doctors we have fought over patients but I think it is time to protect them," he said.

The doctors expressed concern at the many drugs that had been introduced on the market without undergoing the necessary stringent tests stipulated. Many of the doctors observed that many people were desperate to get cured of the killer AIDS and would buy any drug that was available on the market. "We have nothing against this new drug but all we are saying is that it should be checked before it is released on the market to protect people's lives by ensuring that each drug being introduced is tested," a doctor said.

Others, however, said there was no justification for the rigorous tests because so many people had previously come in the country and introduced other immune boosters without following laid down channels. But those against the immediate introduction of the drug insisted on the tests, saying the fact that mistakes were made in the past was not reason enough for them to be repeated.

The distributor of the new drug, Dr Cornes said that he was willing to follow the laid down procedures before releasing his immune booster on the Zambian market. He said the drug boosts the immune system quickly and would assist fight both viral invaders and secondary infection and immune restoration through dynamic mineral therapy.

Zambia Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (ZBCA) chairman Masautso Nyathando welcomed the new drug, saying it would increase variety of drugs against HIV/AIDS.

"Medics Cheer Tian."
The Times of Zambia, January 28, 2002

AIDS researcher, Shengxun Tian, yesterday welcomed the move by medical staff to subject a new AIDS immune booster to scientific tests before it can be launched on the local market. Professor Tian who claims to have a cure for AIDS said it would have been wrong to market the drug without subjecting it to local efficacy tests just because it was coming from a Western country.

The Chinese traditional doctor said all drugs should be subjected to local tests just like the Tian immune booster through which he claims to have cured over 3,000 people. He was not moved by the introduction of a new drug, being distributed by AID Action of the US because he was convinced the Tian Immunity Booster could cure the deadly AIDS.

Prof Tian's booster was one of the local drugs still awaiting further scientific tests to determine its efficacy. Recently medical doctors openly differed over the planned launch of the new herbal immune booster without locally testing its efficacy. The National HIV/AIDS STD/TB Council directed the distributor of the new booster not to offload it on the Zambian market until it was tested locally.

Prof Tian noted, however, it was sad to note that more than 40 million people living with AIDS would die if they did not get life-prolonging drugs as reported by a public physician. He said: "It is going to be a blow to the world to have that large number of people die from AIDS when there is a possible cure in Zambia."

Prof Tian has been using his natural drug for about seven years and so far no side-effects have been observed in patients. "I use conventional drugs just for the prevention of tuberculosis and malaria but not for curing the deadly HIV/AIDS," he said.

"HIV/AIDS Hampers Poverty Reduction." By Bivan Saluseki
The Post, January 24, 2002

Poverty cannot be reduced in the current environment where HIV/AIDS prevalence is high, a Ministry of Finance report to the World Bank has stated.

The 2001 report entitled Programme Purpose and Development Objective of the Multi-Country HIV/AIDS Programme (MAP) Project Appraisal Document No. 20727-AFR, indicated that prevention and mitigation of HIV/AIDS is central to an effective poverty-reduction strategy. "Measures to reduce poverty are thus likely to fail in the current environment where HIV prevalence is high.

Poverty provides the conditions for the spread of HIV/AIDS," the report stated. The report stated that the effects of poverty were especially being felt among the children, and their suffering has been called Zambia's silent crisis, as much of it is contained in the confines of households and communities. "There is little doubt that the HIV/AIDS epidemic has significantly worsened their situation.

Already in 1999 there were an estimated 520,000 children orphaned as a result of AIDS in Zambia. That number is estimated to rise to 895,000 by 2009 and 974,000 by 2014," the report stated. The ministry stated that the advent of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Zambia has led to high tuberculosis infection rates which have increased nearly five-fold, from a fairly constant rate of 100 new cases per 100,000 population in 1984 to over 500 new cases per 100,000 population in 1996.

"The number of new cases will continue to increase rapidly and could reach 50,000 by the year 2005. In addition to the human suffering involved, this poses a huge additional burden on the already over-stretched and under resourced health sector, both in terms of financial and human resource requirements," the report stated. According to the report, the life expectancy in Zambia has significantly decreased as a result of increased infant mortality rates and adult mortality rates.

"Between 2000 and 2010, another million Zambians may die, for a cumulative total of 1.8 million deaths since the beginning of the epidemic," it stated. The report stated that the figure is enormous and illustrates that the full brunt of HIV/AIDS will be felt in the future.

The total resources required to seriously address the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Zambia are estimated at around US$560 million over three years which includes the costs for Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Treatment (HAART). The report stated that Zambia has embarked upon a multi-sectoral response for the prevention of new infections and the mitigation of the impact of the epidemic.

"This has been pursued by stimulating and catalysing government, private sector, NGOs, and church organisations participation in the response," stated the report.

"Zimba Links Increase in Epilepsy Cases to HIV/AIDS, Malaria." By Speedwell Mupuchi
The Post, January 24, 2002

The increase in AIDS and malaria has led to a rise in epilepsy cases in the country, said Epilepsy Association of Zambia chairperson Anthony Zimba yesterday.

Zimba explained that reduced immunity in AIDS patients often lead to them having continuous lapses, a condition he described as fits which he said develop into epilepsy. "Malaria and HIV/AIDS have contributed to the rise in fits because the body becomes weak when the immunity goes down," Zimba said.

"Very high temperatures as a result of malaria also trigger fits." Zimba said epileptic patients were discriminated against in workplaces, schools and society because of the stigmas associated with the disease. He explained that the disease was not infectious and contagious.

According to Zimba, other causes of epilepsy include vascular accidents, post natal causes when a baby is born with brain defects, brain infections, syphilis (neural syphilis) and toxic gases. Zimba said epilepsy was very dangerous hence the need for society to accept people who suffer from the disease. He said the disease can be controlled if diagnosed early.

"Mopani Spearheads HIV/Aids Campaign With Drama." By John Kapesa
The Times of Zambia, January 24, 2002

A play entitled Souring Sweet under rehearsal by Mopani Mine workers at Mufulira Little Theatre has reached advanced stage and is awaiting film recording. The eight-character play will soon be performed and screened in Mufulira and Kitwe, where Mopani runs the copper mines.

The story revolves round three families whose bread winners all work for the mines. At work, the three men are very safety conscious, but two of them being miscellaneous, each day after a hard day's work, saunter into town for a late night's swig of beer. One eventually contracts the virus and dies of AIDS. The other lives to tell the tale.

The play, an in-house sensitisation story, emphasises the need for miners to refrain from mischief and prostitution which has led to loss of manpower. On average, hospital statistics in Mufulira and Kitwe record that five miners die of AIDS-related illnesses each month.

The project is being spearheaded by theatre enthusiast, David Black, Mopani's manager engineering. Black has already intimated that he will improve the Little Theatre where the play will first be staged and filmed. A check at the Theatre Club early this week showed that spotlights and backdrop curtains had been fixed.

Directed by Tom Ngulube, one of Zambia's two-time Nataaz best actor for the years, 1988 and 1989, the play features some of the stage old hands in the name of Chambula Mupakile, Bornface Kambwali, Costern Hamakumba, Rachael Kaweza, Esau Phiri, Posh Lubafu and "Wind versus Polygamy" 1991 Copperbelt best actor Linos Mulenga.

"HIV/AIDS Has Increased TB Cases - Dr Mwinga."
The Post, January 23, 2002

Tuberculosis (TB) cases have increased in Zambia due to the prevalence of HIV/AIDS, said TB specialist at the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Dr Alwyn Mwinga yesterday.

Dr Mwinga said the increase is almost five times more than the last 15 years. "We are trying to bring the situation under control through the improved detection of cases and provision of health care to the infected," she said. Dr Mwinga said CDC had also intensified health education to encourage TB patients to comply with the treatment course.

"The eight months needed to take TB treatment is too long and we have organised some groups of personnel to help to ensure patients comply," Dr Mwinga said. "TB drugs are available and free. I don't see any reason why affected people should not come forward for treatment."

And University Teaching Hospital (UTH) managing director Dr Ellwyn Chomba has thanked Dr Mwinga for initiating a project to renovate a dilapidated building into a new TB clinic. Dr Chomba said the new building will go a long way in improving the care for TB patients.

"There are very few people who are aware that one can contract TB by coming in and going out of the UTH. This makes all of us vulnerable," Dr Chomba said. "With this building, we will cut down on cross infection." CDC administrative director David Nelson said he was pleased with the rehabilitation work the contractors had done.

He said the inspection revealed that there were still a few more items to be added to the building. "I would like to thank Dr Mwinga who played a pivotal role in the identification for the need for a new TB clinic," said Nelson.

Dr Chomba said the building will officially be handed over to the Minister of Health Dr Brian Chituwo by United States Ambassador to Zambia David Dunn.

"HIV/AIDS Will Be Treated As a Priority, Says Kasonde." By Reuben Phiri
The Post, January 14, 2002

HIV/AIDS is one of the issues that will be treated as a priority in this year's budget, said finance minister Emmanuel Kasonde yesterday. Speaking to journalists at the Lusaka International Airport, Kasonde said agriculture and rural roads will be among the priorities in the 2002 budget which is expected to be presented before Parliament next month.

"You can be assured that the priority areas will be looked at," Kasonde said. "We want to really hammer AIDS, agriculture and the rural roads." Kasonde declined to give an overview of the expected budget.

He said he needed time to go through the figures and get instructions from Cabinet before he could comment. Kasonde also refused to comment on the levels of the intended tax reforms. He said all these will be made known at the appropriate time.

"African Men Blamed Over AIDS."
The Post, January 14, 2002

African women delegates at an international conference on Aids have strongly criticised African men, saying their attitude towards sex is putting their lives at risks and helping to spread HIV throughout the continent.

Women at the conference in Burkino Faso blamed the male-dominated culture in African countries for infecting the highest number of women of any continent with the virus which causes the disease. They said practices such as a refusal to wear a condom, intimidating young girls into having sex, polygamy, and rape were major problems.

Superstitions such as purification through having sex with a virgin were also endangering women's lives. Delegates heard that many African women had to run a gauntlet of taboo, male opposition and financial worry just to get access to HIV tests and the simplest drugs.

These hurdles simply helped the virus to be transmitted from mother to child, in the womb and through maternal milk. Women were widely regarded as chattels, mired in poverty and poor education and condemned to a life of child raising.

One delegate claimed that of 20m people on the continent with HIV, more than half were women, a higher percentage than anywhere else in the world. The conference heard that finding solutions depended on practical work with local communities, rather than agreeing on grandiose declarations.

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