HIV taking horrific toll on SA females

Number of infected girls and young women could fill 85 000-capacity stadium annually

ASTAGGERING 2 000 girls and young women are infected with HIV every week in the country – enough to easily fill the 85 000-strong capacity FNB Stadium in Johannesburg every year.

This shocking announcement was made by Basic Education Deputy Minister Enver Surty during a presentation of the department’s integrated policy on HIV‚ TB and STIs in schools yesterday.

He was leading a delegation on the sidelines of the three-day 8th SA Aids Conference at the Durban International Convention Centre.

“A staggering 2 000 girls and young women are newly infected with HIV every single week,” he said.

“Fifty two weeks of the year – this is the Ellis Park Stadium filled twice or Soccer City in Nasrec with every single seat taken plus [people] outside‚ or a capacity crowd at Moses Mabhida, just down the road from here, with an additional 35 000 outside.

“We cannot let this situation continue.

“It will undermine every effort we make towards creating a prosperous and thriving society.”

Surty said the department’s national policy had been one of the most consulted to come out of any government department.

“It is now common knowledge that our youth bears the brunt of new HIV infections‚” he said.

The implementation of the new policy was the responsibility of all managers with the education and health systems.

Earlier, at the first presentation on the policy‚ the department’s Amanda Rozani said its development was done against the backdrop of HIV prevalence in the country.

“HIV and TB constitute a major management challenge in that it leads to negative health outcomes for educators‚ officials, pupils and students,” she said.

“It also results in absenteeism‚ poor academic achievement and increased vulnerability among learners due to either being themselves infected or their caregivers or parents being infected.”

The policy was the first to address HIV and TB together.

As part of the policy‚ the department will facilitate access to male and female condoms for pupils over the age of 12 as well as all teachers‚ school support staff and officials.

This will also include information on the use of condoms.

The policy states that management of the distribution process and mechanism for the storage and distribution of condoms will be informed by the local context of each institution.

The provision of male and female condoms and other forms of contraception‚ together with information on their use‚ would also be assured by the department in a discreet‚ appropriate and accessible manner in the workplace. – TimesLIVE