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Victor Maphosa-Mashonaland East Bureau

NATIONAL Aids Council (NAC) has handed over 344 bicycles to community volunteers so far, with those in Mashonaland East Province getting 92 on Monday, to ensure delivery of efficient service.

The 92 bicycles will be distributed to community volunteers in Chikomba, Hwedza and Uzumba, Maramba and Pfungwe districts.

So far, community volunteers in Mashonaland Central Province have received 130 bicycles while those in Hwange District of Matabeleland North Province got 22 bicycles and Harare got 100. Among other issues, NAC’s mandate is to provide measures to combat the spread of HIV and management, coordination and implementation of programmes that reduce the impact of HIV and Aids and Covid-19.

Investment in community peer-led HIV prevention interventions is now at the heart of HIV and AIDS programming in Zimbabwe, as NAC coordinates the multi-sectoral approach towards eliminating HIV by 2030.

NAC and its partners are making use of scientifically proven prevention models to target specific populations such as adolescent girls and young woman (AGYW)

For the AGYW Programme, NAC is making use of HIV prevention models that are community based and peer-led.

The use of trained community volunteers is at the core of this programming approach and on Monday, 92 of them were given bicycles, for them to reach wide with their services.

This peer-led approach is in line with the Zimbabwe National Aids Strategic Plan, 2021-2025 and Zimbabwe’s Reproductive Maternal, Child, Adolescent Health and Nutrition Strategy 2017-2021 which states that health communication is more effective if it involves dialogue and problem solving skills provided through participatory or empowering approaches where the communities are actively involved in decision making for their own health.

The community-based peer-led approach is also in line with the dictates of the country’s National Development Strategy 1, which focuses on capacitating communities to take the lead in pursuit of their development desires.

It is also in line with SDG Goal Number 3 on Health and Well-being and dovetails with the global vision of ending Aids by 2030.

Officiating at the handover of the bicycles, director in Minister of Provincial Affairs and Devolution for Mashonaland East Province office, Mr Muchemwa Mugwisi commended the gesture by NAC.

“As Government, we feel happy to note that the National Aids Council is taking the National Aids Trust Fund back to the community through implementation of HIV Prevention Models that are community based.”