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What's HappeningNGO to Construct Home for Orphans | HIV/AIDS Rate Drops Again |DISH TV Series (2002) | Ugandans to Train South Africans on AIDS | Museveni Assertive on AIDS Strategy | Many Women Cannot Control Risk Of Infection | 1.4 Million Ugandans Infected With AIDS Virus | Africa Almanac Website | Mandatory HIV/AIDS Tests for Pregnant Women | HIV/Aids in Pregnant Women Down By Half | Northern youths lament "unimaginable misery" NGO to Construct Home for Orphans Kampala, Sep 05, 2001 (New Vision/All Africa Global Media via COMTEX)-- A US-based international organisation, Charity International, is to construct a US$1.5m (sh2.6b) permanent children's home for AIDS orphans in Uganda. Charity International is a community development corporation in Elizabeth, Colorado. Jack L. Harris, the board chairman for the NGO, on Monday said at The New Vision offices that once construction was completed, the home would provide permanent accommodation to children whose parents had died of AIDS. "What we are looking at now is purchasing land for building a self sustaining children's village. These orphans whose parents died are causing lots of problems on the street. There is no single nation that can handle the AIDS crisis so we have to come together to help these children," Harris said. "We have observed that Uganda has attracted global attention following the progress it has made on AIDS. For this reason, Uganda shall be the model in Africa for this project whose success will determine its spread to other countries in Africa. We shall take on 800-1000 children from each community," he said. Harris, accompanied by Nick Pacheco, a supporter of Charity International, came to Uganda to find a site for constructing the children's village.
by Lillian Nalumansi
HIV/AIDS Rate Drops Again Kampala, Aug 31, 2001 (New Vision/All Africa Global Media via COMTEX)-- THE HIV infection rate among women attending antenatal clinics in Uganda has declined further from 6.8% at the end of 1999 to 6.1% at the end of 2000, government officials said yesterday. A surveillance report just released by the Ministry of Health indicates that the decline was sharper in the urban areas, where the average rate went down from 10.9% to 8.7%. In the rural areas, the 1999 prevalence was 4.3% while the new rate is 4.2% but experts say there is no significant difference between the two figures. The tests are conducted at the antenatal clinics in 15 hospitals around the country. Each tests 250 - 600 blood samples monthly. The report said the highest HIV prevalence ever reported in any of the sites was 30.2% in Mbarara in 1992 but it has fallen to 10.0%. The Director General of the Uganda AIDS Commission, Dr. David Kihumuro-Apuuli, said the decline observed among pregnant women reflects the general trend of HIV/AIDS in the country. President Yoweri Museveni last month hinted at the decline but said the report had not yet been released. However, Major Rubaramira Ruranga, an AIDS activist, immediately doubted the figures. Kihumuro-Apuuli yesterday said, "There are doubting thomases in this country as to whether the President was telling the truth. These figures are scientific." He was speaking at the launch of a project in which the Government and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative will test AIDS vaccines. Dr. Pontiano Kaleebu of the Uganda Virus Research Institute will be the lead scientist. Assistant commissioner for national disease control Dr. Alex Opio said the ministry had printed 10,000 copies of the report for distribution. He said the HIV infection rates among pregnant women had been declining since 1996. He said a separate survey conducted at Kyamulibwa in Masaka district by the Medical Research Council of Britain and Ugandan experts, also showed a reduction of new HIV cases annually. Kihumuro-Apuuli said another recent report of the joint United Nations programme on HIV/AIDS said the number of people who die of AIDS in Uganda annually had fallen by 20% between 1999 and 2000. Meanwhile, the Government and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative yesterday launched a partnership to conduct vaccine trials. The ceremony, presided over by health state minister Mike Mukula at the Kampala Conference Centre, was preceded by the signing of an agreement at the ministry. Mukula said Uganda should be seen as a partner and not as a mere site for testing vaccines. He cautioned the scientists to observe ethical standards and said Ugandans should continue to avoid infection since there is no vaccine yet. by Charles Wendo
Entertainment with Social Message Spreads ... BALTIMORE, Aug 29, 2001 (U.S. Newswire via COMTEX) -- A team of producers, scriptwriters and directors will gather this fall to begin drafting a dramatic series that will appeal to young adults, but the team isn't in Hollywood and the goal isn't ratings or advertising. These scriptwriters will meet in Uganda to craft a show that portrays young adults making healthy decisions about family planning, raising children, and preventing diseases such as malaria and HIV/AIDS. The Ugandan 13-part serial drama for television is just one example of "Entertainment-Education," or the practice of using mass entertainment as a vehicle for delivering public health messages. Whether it's a radio show, rock concert, live theater production, local folk media, or television drama, Entertainment-Education has become a standard component of public health communication. The Johns Hopkins University Center for Communication Programs (JHU/CCP), one of the pioneers in the field, will help the Ugandan team develop accurate health messages, while the scriptwriters will make sure the material is entertaining. "Entertainment-Education has become an accepted public health communication tool because researchers have been able to document its effectiveness," said Phyllis Tilson Piotrow, director of JHU/CCP. "We have learned that if you can produce an entertaining soap opera, viewers will remember and identify with characters making important decisions and the consequences of those decisions." Experts in the field of Entertainment-Education gathered last year in the Netherlands to discuss its evolution and the impact it can have on social change. JHU/CCP, the Netherlands Entertainment-Education Foundation, and Ohio University have just released the proceedings from the Third International Entertainment-Education Conference for Social Change. Those proceedings include a declaration to continue advancing and expanding the field to benefit society. "Working collaboratively with entertainment specialists is the best way to develop a quality product that viewers or listeners will remember and, perhaps, act on," Piotrow said. "We made a commitment in the Netherlands to continue to refine and improve the field as we do our work around the world." JHU/CCP helps build the capacities of local organizations in numerous
Entertainment-Education projects internationally, including:
JHU/CCP is a pioneer in the field of strategic, research-based communication for behavior change and health promotion that has helped transform the theory and practice of public health. With representatives in more than 30 countries, JHU/CCP has been a leader in the development of projects based on systematic needs assessments and clear strategies for positioning and presenting the benefits of health interventions to appropriate audiences. To find out more about JHU/CCP, go to http://www.jhuccp.org. To obtain a copy of the Proceedings from the Third International Entertainment Education Conference for Social Change, contact Kim Martin at 410-659-6140. CONTACT: Kim Martin of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Communication Programs (JHU/CCP), 410-659-614 View additional information on the Uganda Television Series (2002). Back to TopUgandans to Train S. Africans on AIDS The Volunteer Service Organization (VSO), an international development charity, has launched a pilot scheme which will enable South Africa and other countries hit by the AIDS epidemic to learn from Uganda's progress, the New Vision newspaper reported on Thursday. "In the near future, the VSO is going to recruit Ugandans as part of our staff to work in South Africa particularly in the field of HIV/AIDS," Stuart Mulholland, the VSO Program Director, was quoted as saying. He added that the VSO will train South Africans so that they can learn from Ugandans. Uganda has achieved great success in fighting against HIV/AIDS, bringing the prevalence from over 30 percent in 1980s and early 1990s down to the current 9 percent. Back to TopMuseveni Assertive on AIDS Strategy President Yoweri Museveni has appealed for a global fund-raising drive to offset the cost of developing AIDS drugs to enable pharmaceutical companies reduce prices. Addressing a conference on AIDS Care in Africa at the Sheraton Kampala Hotel yesterday, Museveni said Uganda was willing to contribute US$2m (sh3.6b) to the fund if the global community agreed to the proposal. The conference, convened by the Rockefeller Foundation, is seeking the best means of expanding access to AIDS treatment in Africa where over 70% of the world's HIV positive people live. Museveni said the pharmaceutical companies were not charitable organisations and should not be expected to forego money. "I will not waste my time trying to make them philanthropic. They are in the business of drugs to make profits. Why don't we negotiate with them as the international community and see how much money they put in the development of the drugs? We can fundraise and pay off these companies then they can lower the cost of the drugs," he said. Museveni said his efforts to develop the country were being held back by AIDS, which reduces the GDP growth rate by 1%. "Uganda has been one of the fastest growing economies but this would have been better without AIDS. We have been having an average growth of 6.5% over the last 15 years. It would be 7.5% if there was no AIDS," he said. Museveni said more than half the hospital beds were occupied by people suffering from HIV-related illnesses. He said even mental illnesses were increasing due to HIV/AIDS. The director of the US national Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci, hailed Museveni for "an extraordinary leadership" that has led to the decline in HIV infection rates and set an example to the rest of the world. Museveni said whereas Uganda's HIV infection rates had declined from 30% to 8% over the last 10 years, the rate was still high. He called for more vigilance and innovative ways of controlling HIV/AIDS. He blamed the widespread of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980s on the
breakdown
of the traditional sexual discipline, poor health infrastructure and false
sense
of security in the cure for sexually transmitted diseases like syphilis.
"I knew the combination of these things would spell disaster. I had to
resort to
the loudest method of sending alarms to our people," Museveni said.
Museveni praised the traditional extended family systems, which have
saved the
Government from building orphanages for the country's 1.7million AIDS
orphans.
About 800,000 Ugandans have died of HIV/AIDS. Many Women Cannot Control Risk Of Infection "I told my husband that it was better to use condoms, the doctor said so. The doctor had also given me some to use at home. My husband became very angry and asked who gave me permission to bring condoms home". These were the words of Hazel Okello as she related the turbulent times with her late husband shortly before she discovered she was living with HIV, the virus which leads to AIDS, six years ago. She is a mother of three. Hazel, a former primary school teacher in rural eastern Uganda, says she could not jeopardise her husband's support even when she suspected he had AIDS. For many women like Hazel, they are exposed to HIV infection in a specific way - heterosexual transmission. A recent UNAIDS report states that four out of five of all women infected get the virus from a male partner. This goes to show that simply being married has proved a major risk for women who have little control over abstinence or condom use at home or indeed their husband's extra-marital liaisons. A further dilemma is that couples wanting to have children cannot use condoms. Sexually Transmitted Diseases STDs, which compound a woman's biological vulnerability to HIV, often go untreated even when there are symptoms. In defining a vulnerable woman, a member of the long-standing National Community of Women Living with AIDS in Uganda NACWOLA, Scovia Kassolo, says a vulnerable woman is one who is lacking in power or control over her own risk of infection. She recommends that the remedy is empowerment. Formed in 1992, NACWOLA began as a follow-up of the International Conference for Women living with AIDS held in Amsterdam, Holland, to cater for the needs of Ugandan women who were HIV positive. Asked whether it was acceptable for the women to re-marry, Kassolo says it is acceptable as long as they use condoms. She adds that it is even better if the couple abstained. Relating to the fact that while some men agree to use condoms with their wives, many react with anger, violence or even abandon their wives, Kassolo acknowledges that barrier methods like the female condom would come in handy. The female condom is a soft loose fitting plastic pouch made of polyurethane that fits the organ. It has a semi-stiff plastic ring at each end. t resembles a small plastic stocking. The inner ring is used to insert the device and hold it in place. The outer ring partly covers the labia area and holds the condom open. The female condom is already in the Ugandan market. But the one hitch is that few women can buy it. It costs about US$ 2.50 a piece compared to the male condom that costs about a dollar and in some instances is supplied free of charge. Recognising that the device may be too costly for most women, efforts are being made to see if it can be used safely more than once. Scientists argue that if re-use is possible, then the cost would decline even if the price for the device itself remains unchanged. Enticing as this may be, would the device remain structurally sound after repeated washing and re-use? Better yet, can sexually transmitted pathogens be removed effectively from the condom after use by a simple washing procedure? Another pertinent question - would reuse harm the woman's organ? Studies conducted by Family Health International FHI have found that the structural integrity of the female condom remains intact after a single act of intercourse. The device also remains intact in the laboratory after up to 10 washes with or without bleach disinfection. The washing procedure used mild soap in warm water and rinsing, followed by pat drying of both sides of the condom with a towel. According to FHI's Carol Joanis, who is co-ordinating the studies, the health organisation is studying how five uses may affect the male and female sexual organs. Couples who use one device five times are being compared with couples who use new devices for five acts of intercourse. However, preliminary data from the studies found that many organisms are introduced onto the female condom by environmental contaminants through dirty towels or other sources. But that their presence in relatively small numbers should not be problematic in a healthy body. According to Joanis, the FHI studies are going on in Zambia, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Brazil. While these studies seem promising, most public health officials remain
cautious. UNAIDS and the World Health Organisation WHO plan to convene a
panel
of experts to review the issue of reuse.
A WHO scientist involved with the panel's work says the technical group
will
include experts in women's health, STDs microbiology, materials science and
programmatic issues.
A cross-section of women interviewed in Kampala acknowledged the
uniqueness of
the female condom. Some say they would not use it because they would not
like
anything inserted in them. Others argue that they do not like to use
tampons or
barrier methods of birth control that require insertion, let alone the
female
condom.
Those who have used it say the device is just not aesthetically pleasing
because
it squeaks when not adequately lubricated and also considering that for
effective results, the device requires practice. 1.4 Million Ugandans Infected With AIDS Virus Some 1.44 million people in Uganda are HIV positive and 120,000 of them have overt AIDS, reported the Monitor Newspaper on Tuesday. "HIV/AIDS has been recognized globally as a health burden, a development problem and a security issue," the Minister in charge of the Presidency Ruhakana Rugunda was quoted as saying. Rugunda said there are 36.1 million people living with HIV/AIDS world-wide, 25.3 million of them were living in sub-Saharan Africa in 2000. The minister said this while presenting a project of 50 million U.S. dollars for the Uganda AIDS Control Program to the Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on National Economy on Monday. He said the project will be implemented in all line ministries, sectors and districts of Uganda and that particular emphasis will be placed on full participation of local communities. The project will be coordinated by the Uganda AIDS Commission, he added. The east African country has a total population of 21.77 million with an average life expectancy of 45.4 years. Back to TopAfrica Almanac Website Africa Almanac is an award-winning website based in Kampala which reports encouraging developments and trends to promote a positive international image of Africa. Back to TopMandatory HIV/AIDS Tests for Pregnant Women COMTEX NewswireFriday, September 28, 2001 1:20:00 PM The Ministry of Health is considering plans to make HIV/AIDS tests mandatory for all pregnant women in an effort to reduce mother-to-child transmission of the disease, the "Monitor" reported on Friday. The newspaper quoted the Ugandan director-general of health services, Francis Omaswa, as saying that women found to be HIV-positive would then be provided free of charge with drugs designed to prevent mother-to-child transmission. Omaswa told a parliamentary committee on social services that the ministry was drafting a programme which, if implemented, would establish HIV/AIDS testing centres in all district hospitals, and allow them to administer HIV/AIDS drugs to HIV-positive pregnant women. Meanwhile, Minister for Health Jim Muhwezi told parliament on Thursday the government was planning to distribute anti-malaria drugs free on selected days, 'The New Vision' reported. He added that there would be special malaria prevention and treatment packages distributed to mothers and children, according to the government-owned newspaper. Copyright UN Integrated Regional Information Network. Distributed by All Africa Global Media (AllAfrica.com) Back to TopHIV/Aids in Pregnant Women Down By Half Oct 30, 2001 (The Monitor/All Africa Global Media via COMTEX) -- Uganda now
boasts of a 50 percent decline in HIV/AIDS prevalence among women attending
antenatal clinics, the Commissioner Health Services (Community Health) at
the
ministry of Health has said.
UGANDA: Northern youths lament "unimaginable misery" "More than 11,000 children from northern Uganda — with adolescents as the prime targets — have been abducted and forced into soldiering and sexual slavery," said Jane Lowicki, senior coordinator for the Children and Adolescents Project at the WCRWC and author of the report, released in the Ugandan capital, Kampala. "Against All Odds: Surviving the War on Adolescents", was the first-ever report conducted by Ugandan and Sudanese adolescents, who were themselves eyewitnesses, victims and survivors of the 15-year conflict which continued to rage in northern Uganda, she said. "All adolescents in the region are struggling to survive and support themselves," said Lowicki. "These young people are waiting for protection from abduction, sexual violence and HIV/AIDS. They call for peace and ask for skills training and education." The report referred specifically to interviews carried out with over 2,000 adolescents and adults between May and July this year on the situation of adolescents in Gulu, Kitgum and Pader districts, but the neighbouring districts of Moyo, Arua, Adjumani, Lira and Apac were facing a similar situation, the WCRWC stated. "The insecurity of armed conflict, where adolescents are principal targets for murder, abduction, forced recruitment and sexual enslavement", is the top concern of Ugandan and Sudanese young people in northern Uganda, according to the report. Abduction, murder and insecurity caused by the Ugandan rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) was the principal fear, it said. However, Sudanese youths - there are some 200,000 Sudanese refugees in Uganda - faced both abduction by the LRA and forced recruitment by the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), abetted by the Ugandan government, for the SPLA's war against the Sudanese government, it said. War, massive displacement, HIV/AIDS, poverty and lack of development has created a world of "unimaginable misery" for youths, who are shouldering enormous responsibility for themselves, their families and the community as a whole, according to the report. The situation for hundreds of thousands of displaced people in "protected villages" is particularly bad, since they lack "full-scale recognition and attention" from the Ugandan government and are "also without any designated international agency responsible for their care and protection". The youths surveyed called for the international community - and especially the governments of Uganda and Sudan - to act swiftly to lift their burden, and for all combatants to commit themselves to peace, it said. With the Sudanese government ending its support for the LRA, tighter Ugandan army control of the border between the two countries and increasing divisions within the LRA, "the pattern of [youth] abduction had changed and, currently, often involved forced labour and shorter-term captivity" - as opposed to forced movement to Sudan for training and indoctrination, it added. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) this week welcomed the "temporary lull in insecurity" in northern Uganda, which, it said, provided an opportunity to consolidate recent political and social gains that might lead to sustained peace. This could include "a serious commitment towards political accommodation" and heavy investment in marginalised areas "to correct regional disparities, raise standards of living... restore confidence and trust, and to achieve physical security through social security," it said. "There are windows of opportunity and we need to keep them open," OCHA added. The research also revealed that young people believed northern Uganda was facing an education crisis, "requiring an emergency response to get young people back to school and save their communities from further ruin". Insecurity prevents people from attending school, teachers have been killed, pupils abducted from classrooms and school buildings destroyed. Adults also reported that, with limited resources, they often had to choose between eating and formal learning, the report said. Society in northern Uganda is traditionally agricultural, and young people said their communities were suffering economically, because fear of attacks meant that people could no longer work their land freely. With so many people displaced, few could be self-sufficient, and there was an increasing, and untenable, dependence on humanitarian assistance, they added. Adolescents are also exposed to terrible health risks, danger of sexual violence, psychological trauma and despair, according to Friday's report. The breakdown of traditional society had given rise to increased domestic violence, child abuse and sexual- and gender-based violence, it said. Ugandan girls, particularly in displacement camps, said they were being raped, sexually assaulted, exploited and led into prostitution, principally by Ugandan army soldiers, but also by other adult males and by adolescent boys, it added. The research showed that adolescents were crying out for peace in northern Uganda and southern Sudan to allow them transform their lives, according to Friday's report. This would require, it said: donor support for targeted assistance to address the dire situation affecting adolescents; Ugandan government action to deliver protection and care for marginalised populations in the north; participation of youths in NGO and government programmes; concrete investment in economic development in the north; and, the strong and steadfast political will of the governments of Uganda and Sudan. The adolescents recommended political and peace talks between warring factions, accompanied by a cease-fire. This should be followed by a rehabilitation programme to address social and economic differences in society, emphasising access to food, health, education and security, they said. They also expressed the need to build "a culture of tolerance and reconciliation among the Acholi people" and all Ugandans through both civic education, and community and government action to support the amnesty process for rebels giving up their arms. Friday's report and recommendations are intended to be used for advocacy purposes, to campaign on policy and programme issues in Uganda, and to contribute to international efforts to improve services and protection for refugee and displaced adolescents affected by armed conflict and persecution. "Any hope for adolescents in northern Uganda depends on increased security, decongestion of displaced persons' camps and the creation of lasting peace," it stated. Back to Top |