SPW Mumbwa Community VCT Day 2010

The past 2 weeks since I last wrote my blog have been crazy hectic organizing for our community event, which was last Friday. The event was a community Voluntary Counseling and Testing day, so encouraging people to get tested for HIV and providing testing on site. The theme of the event was 'know your status to access care and support'. It's a really important issue as only 28% of Zambians know their HIV status, potentially hiding the true extent of the pandemic.


Performing Dance4Life with some pupils - cheerleading Zambian style!


Picnicing on nishima

The morning was taken up with drama from an HIV support group from our community, choir, dancing and poems from pupils from 7 local schools, speeches and talks on VCT by local leaders and testimonies from 2 local people living with HIV.


HIV/AIDS support group perform a drama on the importance of going for VCT and knowing your status.


Two community members giving testimonies on how they live with HIV. Their courage to stand up and speak in front of other community members was inspirational.




Village headmen listening to the debate on VCT. Having their support for our programmes is crucial in getting people involved.


The condom distribution point, run by Yukiko the JICA volunteer, and 2 community members. About 1500 male and female condoms, as well as leaflets showing how to use them, were distributed over the course of the day.


Going for VCT myself. Although I'm smiling its actually quite nerve-racking when they ask you how you would react if it was positive. How would you react? In all 50 people went for testing at the event, which was a great start.


The winning netball team from the Network of Zambians Living with HIV - showing even with HIV you can be winners.


The winning football team with their new ball and condoms.

After all the stress of organizing an event for about 500 people I was ready to curl up in a ball and sleep forever, but my friends in Lusaka had other ideas. As it was a bank holiday we headed to town to enjoy proper food, a bed, a few drinks (some more than others...) and a weekend at a nearby lodge.


Party time in LSK


One of the Zebra family wandering round outside


Grubs that hide in trees - also a Zambian delicacy when fried!


Some friends we met while going for a wander out the back of the lodge. It was great to just walk out and have so much wildlife just chilling.


Ash and me, and in the background, some giraffe.


Laura, another volunteer from Mumbwa, and me at Radio UNZA (University of Lusaka) doing an interview on living in a world with HIV. The programme is a weekly talk show on issues surrounding HIV and is broadcast across Lusaka, the capital city of Zambia, so it was a great opportunity to directly talk to a wide audience on the importance of knowing your status and living positively.



So thats it for now. Just another month in placement, and so many things to do before we finally leave, including a peer leader training at school, a community workshop and a teachers' workshop, so its all guns blazing until August. Wish me luck!