With high infection rates among many military forces in Africa, HIV/Aids could pose a security concern in the continent, warned Tanzania's President Jakaya Kikwete.

Elias Sempindo, 72, thought he would spend his twilight years doting on his grandchildren; instead, the retired medical officer is back treating patients at a clinic in Morogoro, 190km west of Tanzania's commercial capital, Dar es Salaam.

Kitchen parties in which brides-to-be are couched in marital affairs have been said to be contributing to the spread of HIV infection in the counrty. This was said on Wednesday in Dar es Salaam by Association of Journalists Against Aids in Tanzania (AJAAT) technical manager Charles Kayoka at a UNICEF-funded training for media people on the Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV (PMTCT). Kayoka told media practitioners that recent research findings on the matter showed that the training lacked a package on HIV/Aids awareness. In his presentation on male participation in the PMTCT, Kayoka explained that most of the training was one-sided, making brides vulnerable to the deadly disease. ``Training in these kitchen parties stresses a woman`s submission to her husband. Women who undergo such training cannot ask and argue with their husbands on sex matters,`` he said. ``This kind of training should also inform women on issues related to HIV/Aids,`` Kayoka stressed. In most cases, women were trained to submit to men`s desires without querying on sex behavioural change, which, according to the AJAAT official, was wrong in today's world where HIV/Aids was a deadly threat.

Gender-based violence or sexual violence against girls and women has currently been a major public concern in many parts of the world, including Tanzania and are accredited with the spread of HIV/Aids. Gender-based violence can pervade the entire life circle of a person as it has happened to Catherine Mabula , a resident of Kibamba, Kinondoni District in Dar es Salaam Region. It was on June 13, 2008 at 9:30pm when the desperate old woman was going back home after buying some goods along the Morogoro Highway. Here she narrates what happened at that ordeal: ``I was going back home at night. Just after arriving at a locally built bridge suddenly I was thrown down the bridge before a young rapist crept up and grabbed me from behind,`` Mabula says. She adds that in no time, the rapist, who lives too close to her house, started to torn out her clothes, especially her underpants. ``Before he started to penetrate, I collapsed and sustained a fracture on my waist and right leg to an extent that I could no longer stand up and shout for a quick help,`` Mabula states. According to Mabula, the rapist grabbed around her neck and she was unable to cry for help. Then she was raped for at least half an hour before she was left alone under the bridge. ``Later, I heard some persons, who were on their way back to their homes. I strived to shout for assistance. They dropped down to the bridge where I was struggling helplessly and picked me up and escorted me to my home,`` she explains. Mabula says after returning at her home, she was asked by her children on what had happened to her during that particular night. ``I told my children that I have been raped by a young boy, who lives at a nearby house. My children decided to take me up to a police station at Mbezi-Luis at the same night for reporting the incident,`` Mabula explains. After reporting the case to the police station, she was rushed to Muhimbili National Hospital for medical attention. ``The next day, I suddenly found myself on a hospital bed and was admitted for about two weeks before I was discharged. I however, have been wondering over reluctance of the police force for not speeding up the investigation regarding my case,`` Mabula narrates desperately.

Children living with HIV/AIDS in Tanzania will benefit from a health care initiative when the Abbott Fund builds a paediatric clinic, the first of its kind in Tanzania. This was announced by the fund at the weekend. The clinic, which the fund says will be a “Centre for Excellence”, is expected to be built in Mbeya Region. When complete, the clinic will provide medical treatment and offer closer care to children living with HIV/AIDS, mainly in Mbeya Region. It is estimated that there are more than 150,000 children in Tanzania who live with HIV/AIDS and are in desperate need of medical treatment and care. Mbeya has the second highest rate of HIV prevalence in the country, with a rate of more than 13 per cent. The region has more than two million people. According to the National AIDS Control Project (NACP), last year only 2,280 children were registered for care. Half their number receives antiretroviral (ARV) therapy. In contrast, almost 16,000 adults in Mbeya are on ARV therapy. The Abbott Fund made the announcement about the paediatric clinic project last Friday in Washington DC when they met representatives from the US government. Other representatives came from Baylor College of Medicine; the government of Tanzania and other partners at a US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) news conference. "Building this clinic represents an important expansion in Abbott's commitment to improving access to care for children in the developing world during the last decade," said Catherine Babington, President of the Abbott Fund.

The problem of new HIV/AIDS infections, which propel Mbeya Region to the second position nationwide, would be addressed if all employers were involved in implementing the country’s strategic plan in fighting the disease. The Chief Executive Officer with the AIDS Business Coalition Tanzania (ABCT) Mr Richard Kasesera, told the ABCT meeting here yesterday that Mbeya’s anti-AIDS initiative must go in tandem with efforts exerted by Malawi and Zambia. He said the reason is that interactions among the people of the three countries are frequent and free. He added that Mbeya would be fighting a fruitless anti-AIDS battle if visiting business persons from Malawi and Zambia had no idea about the crusade. Mr Kasesera said most employers were reluctant to implement anti-AIDS initiatives at their places of work citing flimsy excuses or considering the effort as an expensive undertaking. He said these employers failed to see the medical expenses and funeral costs they incur upon the death of any of their employees. “May I appeal to all employers to conduct a baseline survey on the expenses involved before establishing HIV/AIDS fighting programmes at their workplaces,” Mr Kasesera said. He also urged leaders in Mbeya and Iringa regions to impose rules and regulations which could assist in effecting behaviour change among residents. He said while Mbeya was at least changing from guesthouse construction to hotels, the situation in Iringa was alarming with more and more guesthouses being built. He said guesthouses were the love nests that complicated the fight agaist HIV/AIDS. Opening the meeting, the Regional Medical Officer for Mbeya, Dr Haroun Machibya, urged all employers in the region to support the government in combating the dreaded pandemic. ABCT members in Mbeya Region include Mbeya Cement Company (MCC), CRDB bank, Stanbic Bank and Khanji Ralji Transporters. .

Five per cent of 1,171 Muslims and Christians, who voluntarily tested for HIV here during the first week of the exercise initiated by leaders of the two religions were found to be positive. Mrs Saida Msumi, the communication and training coordinator of Balm in Gilead, which conducted the campaign, said four HIV testing centres were set up to provide free service for followers of the two main religions. "Oddly a good number of people turned out for testing in the selected health centres of Iselamagazi, Bugisi (in Shinyanga Rural), Majengo mosque, new bus stand mosque, Ngokolo Roman Catholic dispensary and AICT Kambarage were highly motivated in the first seven days of the exercise," Mrs Msumi said. Analysis shows that 555 people tested in urban centres and 616 in rural centres, while those attended at mosque testing centres were 236 and church based centres took 319 people. According to statistics, 26 people were tested positive out of 31, who volunteered for HIV testing at church centres, equivalent to eight per cent. Out of 234 Muslims who appeared for testing at mosque testing centres 11 were found to have been infected, equivalent to four per cent of all those, who turned out at mosque centres. Balm in Gilead ran a sensitization campaign and training seminars for health coordinators, religious leaders and journalists in Shinyanga municipality mid-August. The seminars were followed by an in-house campaign by religious leaders, road shows and a local media blitz. The Balm in Gilead coordinator said the turnout had surpassed the target of one thousand people, for which he praised the work done by the media, religious leaders and HIV counselors for facilitating a successful campaign. Mrs Msumi said the Shinyanga campaign was actually a pilot project in the latest HIV combating approach introduced in the country in collaboration with the office of the Zanzibar Mufti, the National Council of Tanzania Muslims (Bakwata), the Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC) and the Christian Council of Tanzania (CCT). These have jointly formed a partnership known as Tanzania HIV-Aids Interfaith Partnership (TIP) whose motto is 'Our Mosques and Churches Show the Way,'" she added.