Thabiso Nxumalo
Zimbabwe Aids Network (ZAN) has partnered three other stakeholders in forming a project that seeks to promote Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) of key population groups in Masvingo province.
ZAN partnered Health Foundation Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Rainbow Community and Women against All Forms of Discrimination in launching the ZIZIWAZI Consortium Project at Lees Inn in Masvingo on January 6, 2021.
The project seeks to empower key population groups which comprises of sex workers, girls and young women and the LGBTIQ Community amongst others in accessing SRHR services and ending HIV related deaths by 2025 as well as reducing transmission by 68 percent the same year.
ZAN programme officer, Lovemore Mupfukura said the project funded by Love Alliance is set to run for five years and its fulcrum is challenging structural barriers of underfunding, criminalization, exclusion and stigmatization of the key population.
“This is a five-year programme; we as key population are not well represented in terms of our rights and resources in every sector including SRHR hence this is us trying to fight for ourselves and get our voice heard and, in the meantime, educating our fellow members on SRHR issues so as to eradicate HIV and AIDS,” said Mapfukura.
He added that the key population contributes 62 percent of the world’s HIV infections whilst they receive only two percent of funding which is a cause of alarm and hence the consortium is in a bid to curb this phenomenon.
“We as key population contribute 62 percent of HIV infections while we only get two percent of funding which makes it hard to fight the pandemic and as such, we are committed to educating our members on options such as condoms, Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and Post-exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) among others as well as educating them on their rights.
“We are currently available in only four provinces in the country, which are Masvingo, Bulawayo, Harare and Manicaland,” said Mupfukura.
National Aids Council (NAC) provincial manager, Agrippa Zizhou said NAC values the key population community and is elated with this consortium as it will yield quality services to society and aid in eradicating HIV and AIDS as well as annihilate inequalities and stigmatization.
“We as NAC value every societal group including the key population group. We applaud the strides they are taking in combating HIV and AIDS for the betterment of the country and the globe as a whole,
“This initiative has brought like-minded partners in key population programme in providing quality services to society and as such NAC is mandated with the co-ordination role,” Zizhou said.
This comes a day after First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa donated farming inputs to sex workers in Gweru to engage in income generating farming projects.
