Cape Town — The BroadReach Group shone a light on a group of women who have made it their priority to help prevent and bring down the prevalence of HIV in young women.
International Women’s Day was celebrated on Friday 8 March and the theme for this year was “Inspire Inclusion”. Each year, the day is dedicated to recognising women for their achievements and dedication to empowering marginalised communities through education, healthcare, and socio-economic development, EWN reported.
The BroadReach Group wanted to highlight those who help young women overcome difficulties they face when it comes to HIV. Clinical Specialist for HIV and Paediatrics at BroadReach Health Development, Dr Ziyanda Makaba, said women and girls accounted for more than 60% of new infections in sub-Saharan Africa in 2022, due to a complex set of factors.
Happy #InternationalWomensDay! Today, we are spotlighting the incredible efforts of our teams in the field who are dedicated to empowering young women with HIV treatment and preventing infections within our communities. Your work is truly appreciated. #IWD2024 #InfluencersForGood pic.twitter.com/yotRovcnzo
— BroadReach (@broadreachinfo) March 8, 2024
However, the tide is turning as more young girls are getting sipport from individuals and community ambassadors whose job it is to encourage friends and neighbours to take preventative measures against HIV, to get tested and to start taking antiretrovirals if they are positive.
“They do such great work in identifying and supporting high-risk adolescent girls and young women. They link them to HIV testing services. Those who test HIV negative, are linked to preventative care, while those who test HIV positive are linked to counselling services and they are supported and enrolled in the ARV programme.” she said.
Makaba added that these community ambassadors are crucial in helping reach the goal of ending all new HIV infections by 2030, and said the data showed how influencer interventions and other communtiy health interventions have seen huge improvements in rates in Mpumalanga already.
Follow African Insider on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
Picture: Pexels
For more African news, visit Africaninsider.com
Compiled by Matthew Petersen
