Mbabane, 18 November 2010 – Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) today launches a report on the fight against a dual epidemic of tuberculosis (TB) and HIV that is devastating the southern African kingdom of Swaziland, cutting life expectancy from 60 years to 31. With a population of just over a million, Swaziland is at the epicentre of a co-epidemic affecting all of southern Africa. The Fighting a dual epidemic report defines the urgent action needed to respond to this major health emergency. “Swaziland has the highest HIV prevalence in the world among adults. Disturbingly, more than 80 percent of TB patients... Continue Reading
The Smile Foundation hosted a Smile Week from 25 – 29 October at the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital. During this Smile Week, children’s facial deformities were corrected in a child-friendly environment. The Smile Foundation uses its relationship with hospitals to engender child friendly culture, best practices, and Smile Foundation standards. The Smile Foundation views this as a chance to give these children a new lease on life. One of the children that were helped during this particular Smile Week is Little Angela (surname withheld). She was operated on by Dr Mark Phipson, a private surgeon, who generously donated his... Continue Reading
JOHANNESBURG, 9 November 2010 (PlusNews) – An aggressive national campaign to persuade people to abstain from sex or commit to 100 percent condom use for a month could make a significant contribution to HIV prevention efforts, says a leading HIV expert. Alan Whiteside of the Health Economics and HIV/AIDS Research Division (HEARD) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal is trying to get the AIDS community talking about this and other innovative strategies to curtail HIV. Addressing delegates at the Third HIV/AIDS in the Workplace Research Conference in Johannesburg on 9 November, Whiteside pointed out that in countries such as Swaziland, where... Continue Reading
By Nawa Mutumweno – High production costs have taken a toll on food prices in various African countries, making the issue of food security a serious challenge on the world’s least developed continent. It is in view of this scenario that COMESA’s specialized agency, the Alliance for Commodity Trade in Eastern and Southern Africa (ACTESA) is implementing the results-oriented 20 million euros two-year European Union-funded project, the COMESA Regional Agro-Inputs Programme (COMRAP). The programme is a deliberate effort to encourage food producers to increase supply and food production to rule out volatile food prices. It is designed to respond to... Continue Reading
KHAYELITSHA, 29 October 2010 (PlusNews) – Shrieks of laughter echo through the community centre in the Cape Town township of Khayelitsha as 20 children aged between four and 15 play a game of tag. They are part of the Cirque du Monde Ibhongolwethu Project run by Cape Town’s Zip Zap Circus School with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). Through twice weekly workshops, HIV-positive children are taught circus-act skills such as the trampoline, tumbling and juggling. For the past 18 months, the sessions have included discussions with MSF’s Youth Officer, Brian Mbanga, who addresses the challenges the children face. From the difficulties... Continue Reading
