World AIDS Day is commemorated each year on 1 December. It is an opportunity for every community to unite in the fight against HIV, show support for people living with HIV, and remember those who have died.
Raising awareness
To help raise HIV/AIDS awareness about this important topic at Communicare complexes, Vulamathuba Empumelelo hosted a Life Skills HIV/AIDS awareness event on 5 and 6 December 2023, targeting youth and children at Bothasig Gardens, Drommedaris, Reyger Court and Goedehoop in Brooklyn. The event focused on educating the children and youth, in an age-appropriate manner about HIV and addressing the stigma and myths about the disease.
Lessons learnt
The children who attended the event, indicated that they loved the interactive and informative sessions. Here are a few of their comments addressing the question of what they learned through the programme:
“I learned about HIV and how HIV it can spread” Avuyile-Drommedaris
“I learned how to prevent HIV” Sihle-Reyger Court
“You can play with people who has HIV” Aisha -Drommedaris
“HIV is not deadly” Winter- Bothasig Gardens
Educate yourself
With 21 0000 new infections reported in South Africa in 2022, it is important that everyone educates themselves about HIV prevention.
Furthermore, Vulamathuba Empumelelo urges all sexually active people to:
• Have themselves tested and know their status.
• Use a condom consistently and prevent themselves from catching or spreading HIV. Condoms are safe, inexpensive, and widely available.
• If you have been diagnosed with HIV, use your medication as prescribed.
• Support people and families living with HIV.
Together, we can prevent this disease from spreading.