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Auxilia Katongomara Chronicle Reporter
ABOUT 62,000 out of nearly 109,000 children living with HIV and Aids in Zimbabwe are not on anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment.
The figure, according to health officials, is too high and means the country may miss next year’s deadline for the Millennium Development Goals on the fight against HIV, TB and malaria.

The revelations come at a time when the Ministry of Health and Child Care has launched a “Know Your Child’s status” campaign as part of this year’s World Aids Day Commemorations on December 1.

The campaign is in line with the Millennium Development Goal number six, which aims at halting and reversing the spread of HIV/Aids and to achieve universal access to treatment for HIV/Aids for all those who need it by 2015.

Activists believe thousands of children, especially orphans in rural areas are unknowingly living with HIV.

Director of HIV/Aids and TB programmes in the Ministry of Health, Dr Owen Mugurungi, said the campaign is aimed at encouraging both men and children to go for testing.

“The Know Your Child Status campaign will go on from November to December and it’s an ongoing programme aimed at encouraging everyone to know their status,” Dr Mugurungi said.

“Of the 109,000 (children) diagnosed with HIV, only 47,000 of them are on anti-retroviral therapy (ART) as at June this year. This constitutes about 46 percent of children who’ve been tested against the 85 percent universal target and we’re working hard to get more children living with HIV on treatment.”

He said the reason why there were fewer children who knew their status is that when parents go for testing, they do not bother to get their children tested as well.

“From our statistics, 70 percent of the adults living with HIV/Aids are now on treatment. We’re closer to achieving the 85 percent universal target of the population on treatment in grown-ups,” said Dr Mugurungi.

He emphasised that although his ministry was campaigning for more children to get tested, there was need for parents and guardians to seek consent from the children as per constitutional requirements.

“Minor children can’t be tested without their consent because you will be infringing their human rights. However, with proper education there are a few who will refuse to get tested,” he added.

According to Section 81 sub-section 2 of the Zimbabwean constitution, a child’s best interests are paramount in every matter concerning the child.

He said the campaign is being carried out in full force in three provinces Matabeleland North, Mashonaland West and Harare because of lack of resources though it is supposed to be a nationwide campaign.

He said the target was mainly men and children because of the total number of people tested in the past year, men constitute only 30 percent and women 50 percent, adding that most men were forced to go for testing through antenatal clinics with their expecting wives but they are naturally reluctant to go for voluntary testing.

“Most men use their wives as yardsticks to test for HIV but there’re also discordant couples where one can be positive while                            the spouse is negative. Our statistics stand at 12 percent, for discordant couples,” he said.

He said knowing one’s status aids people in making informed decisions on their health with the negative ones being motivated to take precautions to stay negative and the positive ones avoiding re-infection as well as seeking treatment earlier.

This year Zimbabwe will be hosting the African Union World Aids Day commemorations in Victoria Falls on December 1.

The commemorations will be held under the theme ‘Getting to Zero in Africa- Africa’s Responsibility, Everyone’s Responsibility’.