National HIV/AIDS/STI/TB Council (NAC) Director General Dr Jabbin Mulawnda has expressed fear of a resurgence of the AIDS epidemic in Zambia unless the business as usual approach to the response is discarded.

Dr Mulwanda said the end of the threat of HIV was still in the distant future as Zambia was still registering about 42,000 new HIV infections annually. He was speaking in Lusaka today when he addressed members of the Network of Media on Health and Development, an outfit of journalists formed to spearhead information dissemination on health, development and related issues.

He challenged media practitioners to effectively exploit their comparative advantage of being information disseminators to advance the cause against HIV and AIDS through corporate social responsibility to help minimise huge costs NAC incurs in procuring media space.

“Mortality rate due to AIDS related deaths has come down to 19,000 per year as of June 2016 compared to 24,000 per year as of 2013 but we are still registering about 42,000 new HIV infections per year. Clearly, if we continue on the business as usual path, we risk witnessing a resurgence of the AIDS epidemic,” said Dr Mulwanda.

And Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services Director of Press and Media Development Mr Isaac Chipampe also noted a decline in HIV and health share in the editorial content attributing this trend to what he termed over concentration on issues with little or no relevance to public health.

“The media have closed the chapter on the HIV and AIDS story. There is need for a mindset shift to prioritise HIV and health related stories to remain on the editorial menu,” said Mr Chipampe. He called for more collaboration among media practitioners, NAC and partners especially in utilising research findings depicting new frontiers of interventions.

Mr Chipampe also counseled the media to seek the HIV and Health news outside the confines of their ‘news-desks’ as the burden of HIV was heaviest in communities especially in poor rural areas.

“Do not expect anyone to bring to your door step information around HIV and health. You must actively seek it out yourselves outside the newsrooms,” he said.

Meanwhile, Media Network on Health and Development Coordinator Mr Enoch Ngoma suggested introduction of an award to inspire the media to invest more in reporting the HIV and Health story. He said lack of logistical support had hampered the operations of the network particularly in the area of transport.

The one day meeting was organised by NAC to revive the network to enable it achieve its commitments made at its formation in 2014 to among other things keep HIV and health on the national development agenda.

Prepared by the NAC Communications Unit

September 26, 2016