A $5 000 grant awarded to Africaid, an organisation helping youths to deal with HIV and Aids by the United States embassy last week, will be used to support a musical DVD production by HIV positive youths and children.
Staff Reporter
Africaid won the 2012 Auxillia Chimusoro HIV and Aids Alumni Award last Thursday in Harare and announced it would use it to help increase positive behaviour choices among the youths in Zimbabwe. Speaking at the award ceremony, US ambassador to Zimbabwe Bruce Wharton said most people living with HIV were not accessing treatment due to stigma.
“Stigma and discrimination continue to prevent some people from accessing readily available HIV and Aids support services, especially among the large, important youth population where there are gaps in knowledge and great stigma to overcome,” said Wharton.
“I am particularly impressed that ultimately you want these young men and women to be the last generation to be born with HIV.”
Africaid director Nicola Willis said her organisation would support production of musical projects by the affected youths as they work with other artistes.
“We will use the grant to support a musical DVD production by HIV positive children and adolescents and they will be supported by established artistes. The production provisionally titled “Make us the Last Generation to be Born With HIV” will be a continuation of Africaid’s innovative “Zvandiri” model which provides community-based treatment, care, support and prevention services for HIV positive children and adolescents,” Willis said.
This year, the US has pledged $95 million to the national HIV and Aids response in Zimbabwe through the President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief to support critical health interventions designed to prevent more HIV infections.
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The pledge is also aimed at scaling up combination prevention initiatives, assisting those orphaned by HIV and other vulnerable children, as well as strengthening the Zimbabwe health system.
