The following blog post was written on the evening of 8th July. Due to technological restrictions it will be posted at a later date. Internet connection is dial-up, therefore images will be attached upon returning to South Africa during the weekend of 11-12 July. Sorry! I have the pictures picked out and will post as soon as I can!
There is a strong difference in health policy, specifically concerning HIV/AIDS, between South Africa and Lesotho.
Concerning South Africa, there seems to be a lack of appreciation for the seriousness of the problem. In fact, governmental officials will refer to HIV and AIDS instead of HIV/AIDS-indicating there is not a definite connection between the two. In addition, the government of South Africa continues to advocate for nutrition programs as a method for battling with the virus. In terms of the ARVs, there seems to be a real suspicion that the United States and the pharmaceutical companies are working to take advantage of the people of South Africa. Some people believe that the ARVs simply don’t work and others believe that they are actually detrimental to an individual’s health and cannot be trusted. There is also the Zuma rape case, during which he stated he showered following a sexual experience with an HIV positive woman to prevent transmission. This created more confusion in the minds of South Africans.
As soon as you cross the border into Lesotho there are huge billboards advocating safe sex. Billboards and posters are posted throughout Lesotho, specifically in public facilities. In addition, ARVs are available to HIV positive people in Lesotho for no cost by the government (which has a negotiated cost and economic assistance through a wide variety of programs). All of the governmental officials we have met have also expressed concern over the HIV/AIDS pandemic without prompting, which was not the case in South Africa. Some of the posters are quite overt, encouraging people to be more comfortable talking about preventive measures.
There is a strong difference in health policy, specifically concerning HIV/AIDS, between South Africa and Lesotho.
Concerning South Africa, there seems to be a lack of appreciation for the seriousness of the problem. In fact, governmental officials will refer to HIV and AIDS instead of HIV/AIDS-indicating there is not a definite connection between the two. In addition, the government of South Africa continues to advocate for nutrition programs as a method for battling with the virus. In terms of the ARVs, there seems to be a real suspicion that the United States and the pharmaceutical companies are working to take advantage of the people of South Africa. Some people believe that the ARVs simply don’t work and others believe that they are actually detrimental to an individual’s health and cannot be trusted. There is also the Zuma rape case, during which he stated he showered following a sexual experience with an HIV positive woman to prevent transmission. This created more confusion in the minds of South Africans.
As soon as you cross the border into Lesotho there are huge billboards advocating safe sex. Billboards and posters are posted throughout Lesotho, specifically in public facilities. In addition, ARVs are available to HIV positive people in Lesotho for no cost by the government (which has a negotiated cost and economic assistance through a wide variety of programs). All of the governmental officials we have met have also expressed concern over the HIV/AIDS pandemic without prompting, which was not the case in South Africa. Some of the posters are quite overt, encouraging people to be more comfortable talking about preventive measures.
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