Story by Wellington Makonese
GOVERNMENT has stepped up efforts to curb the spread of Tuberculosis through the rollout of a national stigma reduction plan and legal toolkit aimed at promoting early treatment and protecting patients from discrimination.
The intervention comes as authorities identify stigma as a major barrier to early testing and treatment, despite ongoing progress in reducing infections and deaths.
Stakeholders recently convened in Gweru for a sensitisation meeting to unpack the TB Stigma Reduction Plan and Legal Toolkit, focusing on patient rights, early detection and eliminating discrimination.
National AIDS Council Bulawayo Provincial Manager, Sinatra Nyathi, said tackling stigma is critical in addressing both TB and HIV/AIDS.
“We cannot end HIV and AIDS by 2030 without addressing TB, as nearly half of people living with HIV will develop TB at some point. Stigma discourages people from seeking treatment, so we are encouraging communities to come forward for screening while also promoting awareness of their rights,” she said.
Director of Rehabilitation and Prevention of Tuberculosis (RAPT), Freddy Mutsvairo, said community engagement remains central to ongoing interventions.
“Our role is to complement Government efforts through targeted TB screening in communities. We work with TB survivors and champions to reach people on the ground, with the vision of achieving a TB-free society. Stigma remains the main challenge that we must address,” he said.
Government says increased cross-border movement and high-risk environments, such as mining communities, are contributing to the spread of TB, including drug-resistant strains, prompting targeted interventions in surveillance and community screening.
Bulawayo Provincial Medical Director, Dr Maphios Siamuchembu, said efforts are being scaled up to strengthen detection and treatment systems.
“We have significant movement to and from South Africa, which increases the risk of TB, including multidrug-resistant TB. However, we have made progress, with the burden reduced compared to 2015. We are enhancing surveillance, deploying mobile clinics to hard-to-reach areas, and strengthening community case-finding while addressing stigma so that people come forward for treatment. We are also working with neighbouring countries as part of a holistic strategy,” he said.
Zimbabwe has adopted the World Health Organisation End TB Strategy, which aims to reduce TB incidence by 90 percent and deaths by 95 percent by 2035, compared to 2015 levels.
