This year’s commemorations come at a time when the epidemic, although progressively becoming manageable, continues to claim lives of former students and student activists who bore the brunt of the yester year socio-political and economic challenges that besieged the country, more so the institutions of higher learning, exposing these students to HIV and AIDS. This year’s commemorations come towards the end of the life span of the Government of National Unity (GNU), which while it lasted nothing much has been allocated to students by the treasury for students’ support, a scenario that continue to expose students to HIV and AIDS.
Students who went through college during the decade 2000-2010 became greatly vulnerable to HIV and AIDS as they engaged in risky behaviors so as to survive. Within this period Zimbabwe’s economy deteriorated to levels comparable to a country at war, GDP declining by 43%, inflation estimated to have reached 231 million% by the Zimbabwe Central Statistical Office by the time it stopped computing inflation rate in July 2008, while other sources reported that inflation rate reached 7, 96 trillion by November 2008 according to a report by the SST “Livelihoods Situational Analysis of University of Zimbabwe Female Students”.
In its report the SST observed that the risky behaviors borders around survival sex, as students came up with coping mechanisms in the face of crippling water shortages, accommodation challenges which saw the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) evicting more around 4500 students in July 2007, unaffordable transport costs where at one time even a day’s cash withdrawal from the bank could not finance a trip to college, income and cash shortages as banks rationed cash withdrawals, unavailability of and poor food quantities and qualities, empty shelves in grocery shops causing challenges in accessing sanitary wear, unrelenting campus violence perpetrated on students demonstrating over these highlighted challenges and challenges related to accessing study aids.
In coping with for instance accommodation challenges, the findings of the afore mentioned SST report indicated that popular strategies all proved to be risky behaviors in the context of HIV and AIDS and they include staying with a boyfriend (5.1%), borrowing or getting money from boyfriend (3.4%), sleeping at a friend’s place (5.1%) while a significant number of students said that the coping strategies were too personal and others refused to reveal theirs. In the context of the foregoing, the unfortunate reality is that the plight of students has not improved significantly despite the coming in of the GNU. Any improvements that have accrued to the students’ plight are a spinoff of economic stabilization and recovery as there are no deliberate initiatives by both the government and the private sector in improving students’ welfare in Zimbabwe’s tertiary education institutions. This means that students will continue to engage in risky behaviors in the realm of survival sex as a coping strategy.
The Student Solidarity Trust continues to record HIV and AIDS related deaths of students of the hyperinflation era. Recently Godswill Jokwe (pseudo name) succumbed at Parirenyatwa hospital in Harare. The former student was among those evicted from halls of residence, when the beleaguered Levi Nyagura’s administration evicted around 4500 students at the UZ in July 2007. Professor Nyagura, the Vice Chancellor of the Zimbabwe’s oldest university and chairman of the Zimbabwe Council of Higher Education stand accused of presiding over the near demise of the institution during the last decade.
The challenge is that the affected and infected students are not receiving adequate support from the government and university authorities including Anti-Retro-Viral drugs. The other challenge is with the stigmatization of people living with HIV and AIDS causing some not to come out in the open to seek assistance. It is in this framework that the SST shall continue to mainstream advocacy initiatives around issues to do with sexual and reproductive health in tertiary learning institutions as part of its programming.
SST challenges stakeholders in the Zimbabwe tertiary education sector to put their heads together in coming up with holistic support for students’ welfare so as to reduce risky behaviors associated with survival sex. In particular the organization challenges Minister Tendai Biti, the treasury boss, President Mugabe the Chancellor of all state universities and the Prime Minster Morgan Tsvangirai, who supervises various ministries with stakes in the running of tertiary education institutions, to prioritize the issue of student support.
This is against a background whereby the country is endowed with vast deposits of mineral wealth including diamonds in Marange; with an insignificant fraction of those proceeds if channelled to students’ support it will be able solve the problem. This is also against a background where if savings are made from foreign travel by the executive; funds could be channelled towards students’ welfare. SST shall continue to rebuke stakeholders with misplaced priorities when the Zimbabwe education sector and the future human resource of the country remain compromised.
Post published in: News