Chronicle Editor
Thandeka Moyo-Ndlovu, Senior Health Reporter
THE National Aids Council (Nac) has established six health centres in Bulawayo to cater for key populations in the province as part of efforts to end Aids and reduce new infections.
This includes gay men and other men who have sex with men, sex workers, transgender people, prisoners and those who inject themselves with drugs.
Service provision to these five main populations is key in ensuring that global targets to end Aids by 2030 are met.
Bulawayo recently became the first city in Zimbabwe to join the Paris Declaration Fast Track Cities, an initiative to help cities commit to ending Aids by 2030.
The province has so far increased coverage of people on the lifesaving antiretroviral therapy (ART), including pregnant women that could have easily transmitted HIV to their new born babies, to 80 percent.
The province also recorded a tremendous achievement in the prevention of mother-to-child-transmission (PMTCT), with all women that tested HIV-positive during antenatal care, labour, delivery and post-delivery being initiated on ART.
Bulawayo has the third highest HIV prevalence rate in Zimbabwe at 13,77 percent, which is also higher than the national average of 11,8 percent.
According to the Bulawayo Nac 2021 third quarter report, the province now has a key population centre in each of its districts, Bulawayo North, Bulawayo South, Nkulumane, Luveve and Emakhandeni.
Bulawayo Nac manager Mrs Sinatra Nyathi said key populations remain at the highest risk of HIV infection compared to the general population.
She said it is important to ensure these have easy access to HIV services to reduce new infections.
“There are several key interventions deployed in the province to ensure access to service delivery by KPs, including HIV testing, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), linkage to ART, viral load testing, STI screening and treatment, among others,” said Mrs Nyathi.
“To scale up programming for key populations, a team of City Health, Nac and KP partners assessed sites for expansion. Six sites were proposed, and each Nac district now has a KP site.”
She said each site will offer HIV service delivery and distribution of KP commodities.
“The cites are in Pumula, Nkulumane, Luveve, Mpopoma and Princess Margret clinics, and so far, the province reached more MSM (51 percent) and sex workers (45 percent), with HIV prevention programmes, which include condom and personal lubricants distribution.
“There is a need to reinforce more efforts towards reaching out to more transgender persons and prisoners as they are also at risk of contracting HIV.” @thamamoe
Online Reporter