Although many people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in Ethiopia have access to life-sustaining anti-retroviral treatments (ART), the majority lack the food and nutrition essential to get the optimal advantages of the medications, officials from DAI said.
USAID said the program, which began four years ago, has helped over 15,000 women and children generate income and food from their garden plot, remain in school, and adhere to AIDS treatment.
Women and children receive not only a plot of land from the municipal bureaus of their respective cities to create a vegetable gardening, according to the agency "but also training on drip irrigation management, HIV/AIDS education and, most importantly, a renewed sense of purpose and hope" An estimated 1 million people currently live with the virus, of which 75,000 are pregnant women, 14,000 are HIV positive births and about 880,000 children are orphans due to AIDS.
The agency said the experience is contributing a lot in reducing the stigma and discrimination by sending a positive message that HIV positive individuals can learn new skills, be productive, and support their families.
In a workshop highlighting PEPFAR Urban Agriculture Program achievements on Friday, State Minister of Health Dr. Kebede Worku said the role played by all stakeholders, including USAID and DAI, should be appreciated.
"The urban gardening project that was implemented in many parts of Ethiopia through Development Alternative Inc (DAI) is one of the excellent examples of partnership against HIV/AIDS," the Minster said.
According to the minister, the benefit of the project was not only for the beneficiaries to feed their families but also the surplus produce of vegetables sold to the surrounding communities to generate income to the needy families was contributing a lot for the society in general.
"When families have income, they can feed and send their children to school," the minister said adding that they become "once again the productive member of the society." The USAID Urban Agriculture Program is funded through the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the largest international health initiative in history dedicated to a single disease.
Source: The Daily Monitor
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