Story by Abigirl Tembo, Health Editor
Vice President General (Retired) Dr Constantino Chiwenga, who is also the Health and Child Care Minister, is in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, for the launch of the Global Alliance to end AIDS in children by 2030 underway at the Julius Nyerere International Convention Centre.
Upon arrival, the Vice President was met at the Julius Nyerere International Airport by Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to Tanzania, Lieutenant General Retired Anselem Sanyatwe and Tanzania’s Deputy Permanent Secretary of Health, Dr Seif Shekalaghe.
In an interview with ZBC News ahead of the minister’s meeting and launch scheduled for this Wednesday afternoon, Vice President Chiwenga said the meeting will give Africa’s health ministers a platform to exchange notes and map the way forward to end HIV in children.
“We have come for this launch and declaration of our commitment to end HIV in children more specifically in children by the year 2030. So this global alliance has to tackle that issue. Countries will also be making commitments and learning from each other’s experiences and then chart the way forward on our objective of ending this pandemic in children.”
He added, “Remember HIV is still a pandemic remember people had forgotten about it because of the covid 19 pandemic but it is still there and what we want is to have all children. If born with this disease they have to be put on treatment. And the only way to protect them is to have the 3 key areas.
“That the person has to be aware of his or her condition and if they are aware they must be put on treatment and they must take their medication and if that happens then we know that we are going to have our children even if they are born with the disease, the disease can be managed if they take their children and they too can leave a normal life.”
Vice President Chiwenga is also expected to meet his Tanzanian counterpart Mr Philip Mapango and also engage the country’s Health Minister to explore areas for cooperation.
