adminGibson Mhaka
AS part of celebrating its 20 years of global impact, PEPFAR is exhibiting at the ongoing Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) revealing the progress and impact that it has made in the fight against HIV and Aids as a public health threat in Zimbabwe and around the world.
PEPFAR communications specialist Gay Nyakwende said they were celebrating their 20th anniversary, while recommitting themselves to sustainably controlling the HIV pandemic and ending Aids by 2030.
She said the end of Aids as a public health threat by 2030 was an ambitious but achievable goal.
“PEPFAR is the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and this year we are happy to commemorate 20 years of providing lifesaving treatment to more than 1.28 million Zimbabweans living with HIV.
“PEPFAR started in 2006 and its focus areas include treatment, care and support for people living with HIV, HIV testing and counselling services, DREAMS initiative to make girls Determined, Resilient, Empowered, Aids-free, Mentored and Safe, Voluntary medical male circumcision and prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV,” said Nyakwende.
She said the US. Government through PEPFAR had invested more than US$1.7 billion since 2006 towards Zimbabwe’s HIV and Aids response.
“In Zimbabwe, the US government has left imprints of success over the past year by providing: HIV testing and counselling for nearly 1.28 million people, cervical cancer screening for more than 192,400 HIV-positive women, Viral load testing for more than 800 000 people living with HIV.
“Voluntary medical male circumcision for 134 794 men to reduce the risk of contracting and transmitting HIV, Tuberculosis preventative treatment for more than 653 400 people since the start of the programme and services for 423 574 orphans and vulnerable children and their families, including HIV prevention, care and treatment, education support and psychosocial services,” said Nyakwende.
PEPFAR collaborates with the Government of Zimbabwe and other bilateral and multilateral health development partners including the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, UNAIDS, UNICEF and WHO and key government partners include the Ministry of Health and Child Care, the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education and the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare.
mbulelo smpofu
shloboe boe
