The Lusaka Provincial Administration has dispatched 50,000 male condoms and 20,000 oral HIV self-testing kits ahead of this Saturday’s symbolic crossing of the Zambezi River in Luangwa District.
The ceremony, led by Paramount Chief Mpezeni IV, commemorates 191 years since the Ngoni migration into Zambia and is being promoted as an annual pre-Nc’wala cultural event.
Lusaka Provincial HIV Coordination Adviser Eunice Masi says government is duty-bound to protect the thousands expected to gather in Luangwa-Feira from unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.
In a statement issued by the Administration’s Principal Public Relations Officer Logic Lukwanda, Mrs Masi says large gatherings often increase the risk of unsafe sexual behaviour, hence the provision of prevention commodities and health education.
Mrs. Masi adds that the intervention aligns with government’s goal of ending AIDS by 2030.Lusaka Province currently has over 347,000 people on antiretroviral therapy and records about 5,500 new HIV infections.
