Zimbabwe is one of the African countries which has been hit by the AIDS pandemic and still not everyone can acces the life saving drugs. Without taking away any credit from the efforts that the government has made so far, it is a concen and a lot of ( People Living with HIV) PLHIV are living in fear of not having their drugs in the near future. The economic sitution can be blamed for the challenges PLHIV are facing but still it is the view of this writer that more can be done. Should Zimbabwe surely rely on donours for the precious lives of its people?The question is valuable considereng a revelation made by the former Minister of Health and Child Welfair DR Parirenyatwa that 98% of the drugs at the National Pharmaceutical Company of Zimbabwe (NAT PHARM ) are donour funded and only 2% belongs to the governemnt fo Zimbabwe.Quiet shocking for a country which is rich in minerals which are making a huge sale abroad.
In light of the above revelation, one will wonder what the role of the National AIDs Trust Funds (NATIF) which is coordinated by the National AIDS Council (NAC) is playing in all this. The truth is, there is no clear and straight answer because all is there are financial reports which needs an interpreter for people like some of us who are freaked out by numbers. Zimbabwe is however applauded for the NATIF funds where every formal employee in Zimbabwe get to contribute 3% of their salary as AIDS levy but is it really a good practice in real life. The National AIDS Council of Zimbawe is now one of the biggest employer in Zimbabwe and so much money is being spent on adminastration, how does this benefit a person who is living with HIV and not accessing their medication?. Of late shortages of drugs for PLHIV has become the order of the day and this has a great impact as most PLHIV are not emloyed and can not afford to buy the drugs over the counter. This has only cought he attention of the affected people but nothing is being done to rectify the problem, infact at this crucial time NAC employees are showered with allowances and loans to buy cars and houses. Not that it is the fault of the NAC employees who are at the receiving end but the blame goes to the NAC ACT which legalises all they are doing. The problem then goes back to the NAC Act, as it is proving to be a monster which was created long back and now its effects are beggining to show. After all, the establshement of the NATF funds came as a result of PLHIV marching and spending nights in the streets, so it is them that should benefit from the AIDS Levy. PLHIV on the 10th of October returned to the streets again upon realising that, the AIDS Levy is not being beneficial to them.
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| some of the crowd who participated in the march held on the 10th of October 2012. |
Divertng from NAC, does it mean that locally it is the responsibility of the National AIDS Council to make sure that ARVS are available all the time for people who need them? The answer is no, and neither is it the responsibility of the Donours. Looking from within Zimbabwe, there are rich people who are channelling their funds in the wrong direction for instance we have Mbada diomonds, surely they can spare a few dollars for the sick and plough back to the community. There are also people like Makandiwa who are making thousand of dollars during every service, what is more important, buying one of the Mahendere brothers a benz and many others or funding the health care system ? The truth is that, money is there in Zimbabwe but the priorites of those with resources are just misplaced. Even the Government itself does not seem to be bugged by the situation because at a time when there is no war in the country, huge amount of money is spent on the army and buying ammunition.
