as presentated at the VIII International Communication for Development Roundtable, Managua, Nicaragua

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SAfAIDS is a regional NGO that was established in 1994 to help strengthen understanding of HIV/AIDS as a development issue with wide socio-economic implications. Its core focus areas include human rights, gender and development.

After an external evaluation in 1997, recommendations suggested the need for SAfAIDS to dialogue more with the media at regional level to encourage debate, improve understanding and promote accurate coverage and communication of HIV/AIDS. A series of consultative meetings with media stakeholders, researchers, donors, UN agencies, academics, communication experts and representatives from civil society endorsed the need for SAfAIDS to establish a media strategy. This programme, which has been running since 1998, acts as a catalyst for provision and dissemination of HIV/AIDS information and undertakes training for journalists, materials production and media advisory services. Journalists, editors, reporters, media managers, and information officers are the key target audience, but in recent years, this has expanded to include PWAs, NGO information officers, trainers and training institutions and interested individuals.

Advocacy communication on HIV/AIDS largely takes place within the following programmatic areas.

Materials Production (resulted out of a 3-country needs assessment in South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe in 1999)

• Providing information in accessible forms, e.g. through media packs, investigative stories, repackaging material to suit audience needs
• Depicting the human face of AIDS is key to materials production – less emphasis on statistics and more on real life issues, stories in localised contexts that communities can relate to
• News editors using locally developed information; not buying into foreign based information news and services

Training for Media Practitioners

• Important to bring about stigma reduction as well through addressing personal attitudes and perceptions of HIV/AIDS
• Change the manner in which media has been stereotyped – war, scourge, plague, victims, shame, blame, curse, punishment
• Focus on evidence-based stories with more investigative journalism using a variety of sources, less sensationalist coverage, headlines, reinforcing negative stereotypes
• Address wider issues of concern such as gender imbalances, public myth and misconception and threatening cultural practices such as dry sex
• Target stakeholders such as editors, heads of media training institutions who have editorial autonomy and can change newsroom policy, influence new ideas/concepts and influence the training curricula (HIV/AIDS component).
• Cyber training for women journalists and NGOs to enable improved use of information technology to efficiently communicate to HIV/AIDS, undertake internet research, publish/post documents and papers and increase e-group debate, get women journalists to challenge their male counterparts in the newsroom and give the AIDS story prominence.

Building Partnerships

• Important to advocate on communication issues using multi-sectoral approach with a plurality of voices that includes international NGOs, UN agencies, academia, civil society, PWAs and community leaders
• SAfAIDS encourages this through its media forum and monthly discussion forums where best practices, recent research and publications/activities are shared and posted on e-networks, newsflashes, and press releases.
• Commitment must be sustained – and I agree fully with the idea of less reliance on donors – but partners moving out of Zimbabwe due to unstable political environment … however, the AIDS problem simply heightens without consistent support and expertise.

A New Initiative – RHAIN

• Technical resource network aimed at mobilizing the strengths and expertise of organisations working in HIV/AIDS information dissemination and media development – foster greater collaboration and joint advocacy efforts concerning HIV/AIDS in southern Africa – strengthen the flow of information on HIV/AIDS at national and regional levels, promote media training and development on HIV/AIDS and strengthen capacity of regional media practitioners to encourage better, well informed and sensitive coverage and communication on HIV/AIDS
• Partners – SAfAIDS, Panos, HDN, HST, UNAIDS Pretoria, UN Integrated Regional Information Network, GTZ, IPS, One World, Africa Alive
• Activities – needs assessment, database of information service providers, e-group forum to promote collaboration and share activities to avoid duplication of efforts, Plus News Information Service bulletin, media training manual for African Journalists

Feature/Columnist Service

• Encourage consistent coverage on HIV/AIDS with specific focus on development, social and economical facets of the epidemic
• Promote open dialogue for plurality of voices – men, women, children, orphans and promote real life experiences, cover issues such as abortion, child welfare, access to condoms for young people and sexuality
• Develop a network of journalists and eminent persons to contribute to shaping the public perception of HIV/AIDS
• WAD collaboration – supporting issues relating to young men, e.g. through media pack production and workshop focusing on young men

Political Commitment

• More commitments from government is important. HIV/AIDS should be a part of govt speeches, conferences addresses and any other meetings at national, regional, international level
• AIDS levy in Zimbabwe is taxpayers' money, yet there is still no accountability to taxpayers on how this money is being used. I read in a recent newspaper that it might very well be re-routed to support the ruling party's election campaign
• National policy document in Zimbabwe, which SAfAIDS backstopped over a three-year process useful for improved understanding at all levels – workplace, testing, counseling, right issues, discrimination. Important for policy documents to be widely publicized and circulated in order to reduce stigma. Important to advocate for a ministerial sub-committee on HIV that reports to the president so that HIV is seen as a development and not merely health issue. Happened very successfully with the Sexual Offences Bill in Zimbabwe recently.

Stigma – Process, not a thing therefore needs long term addressing

• A reliable newspaper recently reported that 6 ministers, nearly a quarter of Zimbabwe's 22-member cabinet is HIV positive. The Zimbabwe government has not publicly acknowledged this, witnessed in the president's national declaration of Heroes' Day that war veteran Chenjerai Hunzvi had not died of AIDS but Malaria. Whether he died of AIDS or not is not the issue, but it was interesting to see how the state and independent press grappled over the cause of death of this controversial ‘public figure'. I have never seen so much sensational AIDS coverage before. My point is - HIV/AIDS information must not be event-driven but a process that should be sustained.
• Unlike Thabo Mbeki, whom I agree desperately needs to understand; Robert Mugabe will not talk about AIDS, reinforcing the conspiracy of silence that surrounds HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe. Some might argue that he is too concerned about the land question, but all know too well that the epidemic is just as old as our country.
• Political commitment is a fundamental ingredient of advocacy communication. Without the support of our top leaders, we cannot make great strides in our respective responses.

Limitations

• Not viewed as a newsworthy story by media, sidelined for war, violence, crime and corruption
• Journalists should move beyond health reporting and view HIV/AIDS as a development issue with wide socio-economic implications that reaches far beyond the health sector
• Proactive lobbying for parliament debates on HIV/AIDS issues, more government commitment and accountability
• Include stakeholders and policy makers in the communication process to share and develop thinking together
• Important to advocate for open dialogue and use role models to bring out HIV/AIDS in a positive manner and avoid stigmatization – deaths are still silenced to short/long illnesses
• Actions and physical emotions/demonstrations can be a powerful means of communication advocacy, such as caring for the sick, acceptance, showing love and care to the infected and affected, including orphans and breaking the them and us barrier.