School authorities in quandary over HIV-positive pupils

The Chronicle

28 January 2012

Mosi-oa-Tunya Secondary School authorities are in a quandary on how to treat or assist pupils living with the HIV virus in case of sickness while at school amid reports that a number of pupils are allegedly taking anti-retroviral drugs.

In this light, the acting headmaster, Mr Rolland Sibanda, has called on the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture to come up with strategies on how the ministry could work along with the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare in assisting such cases so that pupils were not discriminated in any way.

Addressing the Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture, David Coltart, during his visit to the school in Victoria Falls yesterday, Mr Sibanda said some pupils attending school were HIV positive thereby making it a challenge to teachers whom he said were not health experts.

“Right now we do not know what to do in case the pupils on ARVs get sick at school. We have pupils that are taking ARVs. HIV and Aids have taken their toll in Victoria Falls and at our school in particular as 25 percent of our pupils lost their parents from the scourge,” he said.

Asked by Minister Coltart what he thought might be done to help the infected children, Mr Sibanda said: “May the ministry come up with strategies so that there is a relationship between the Education and Health ministries to assist the infected children.”

In response, Minister Coltart said no child should be turned away because of sickness unless of course the sickness was contagious. He said there was a need for a multi-faceted approach in dealing with the matter.

“We also need to encourage headmasters and the district education officers to establish rapport with the Ministry of Health so that nursing sisters visit the affected children and teachers in schools and assist where necessary.

“Secondly we already have the HIV and AIDS curriculum in terms of the national curriculum and so there is a place for HIV and AIDS and the infected in schools,” said Minister Coltart.

He said if the matter was nationwide then there as a need to revisit and improve the regulations.

Meanwhile, addressing parents and teachers after a brief tour of the school, Minster Coltart said he was saddened that the school was not offering lessons because of the teachers’ strike.

He said the strike had paralysed the education sector.

“It pains me as a Minister and it is very depressing to see the children who are supposed to be learning being prejudiced. After delivering the textbooks, it pains to see that there are no teachers to exploit that. Let us hope it is for a short time.”

Minister Coltart said it was high time that the teaching profession’s noble status was restored in the society.

“The profession used to be noble like 50 years ago when President Mugabe was a teacher, every parent dreamt that his or her child becomes a teacher also. The teaching profession has lost the respect if had and this is evidenced by the paltry salaries and poor working conditions the teachers are subjected to,” he said.