Author: Njih Favour
The global AIDS response is at a paradoxical point. On the one hand, the world is on the cusp of a “prevention revolution” with long-acting HIV prevention drugs, most notably the six-monthly injectable, lenacapavir, which is expected to be rolled out in South Africa by mid-2026. On the other hand, countries are looking for ways to keep HIV programmes running after the U.S withdrew development funding earlier this year. “There is a funding crisis. We must find ways to plug the gaps left by the withdrawal of donor aid. Countries need to look at their domestic budgets for where they…
Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi presented a R64.8 bn budget. (Photo: GCIS) Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi presented a R64.8 bn budget. (Photo: GCIS) South Africa will be among the first countries in the world to receive doses of lenacapavir, the long-acting HIV prevention drug administered once every six months. This was announced by health minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, during the Health Budget Vote on Wednesday. “It is envisaged that the first shipment will reach at least one African country by the end of 2025 – we intend to be such a country and we have already started putting the…
It’s been six months since the U.S froze and subsequently cancelled critical funding of HIV programmes around the world. Despite South Africa being a major beneficiary of U.S HIV funding through PEPFAR (the U.S President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), health minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi has previously stated that the country’s HIV programme would not be derailed by the funding cuts. But recent research suggests there’s cause for concern. “Funding cuts have hindered the progress related to the HIV epidemic,” says Khensani Chauke from the Gauteng Department of Health. Chauke was among researchers presenting their findings on the impact of…
This project is funded by: Patients admitted to Hewu Hospital in the Eastern Cape are subjected to cold wards with no heaters and dilapidated prefabricated walls. Situated at Whittlesea about 35 km from Queenstown, also known as Komani, it serves nearly 298,000 people from 36 villages. In April this year, the hospital’s board chairperson, Zukile Khondlo, wrote to Premier Lubabalo Mabuyane, saying “only 168 of the 229 beds in the hospital are usable”. The facility has not had any major renovations since it started operating in 1988. Subscribe to our newsletter Lwando Thembani who was discharged from the hospital on…
Community healthcare workers aren’t qualified to treat serious mental health issues, but they can offer vital support and referrals when needed. (Shutterstock) News & Features 7th July 2025 | Sue Segar South Africa does not have enough psychologists and psychiatrists to meet the mental health needs of everyone in the country. One solution is to train community healthcare workers to provide some basic mental health support. We explore how one such a task-sharing project is being scaled up in KwaZulu-Natal. It’s a Wednesday morning in the Amajuba district near Newcastle in KwaZulu-Natal. A community healthcare worker walks into a brick…
This project is funded by: What began as a struggle with drugs in 2010 has turned into a powerful testimony of change and hope. Sipho Dlamini, once addicted to substances and infected with both HIV and tuberculosis (TB) from shared needles, is now using his story to help others. Sipho Dlamini uses his battle with addiction as a cautionary tale. (Photo: Supplied) Dlamini’s journey into addiction was like that of many young people: marked by peer pressure, emotional pain, and the false comfort of drugs. “I started smoking in 2010,” he says. “At the time, I didn’t understand the dangers.…
The community of Welkom, in the Free State, is crying foul after three weeks without running water while raw sewage runs through their streets. Residents criticised the “clean cities and towns” campaign launched by Deputy President Paul Mashatile in Welkom this week. Bronville resident Quinton Bergman says the provincial government must put the Matjhabeng local municipality under administration for failing to provide basic services. “They are hosting a cleaning campaign whereby the neighbouring Ward 11 (Bronville) hasn’t had running water for 15 days, and raw sewage has been blocking the Bronville Primary School entrance since November 2024. We’ve reported this…
US President Donald Trump’s administration has cut life-saving aid to many African countries. (Photo: White House/Shealah Craighead) Comment & Analysis 4th July 2025 | Russell Rensburg South Africa still lacks an action plan after the withdrawal of US aid for HIV and related health services. But when funds do arrive, how will they be managed? Russell Rensburg suggests the answer may lie in the District Health Programme Grant. The government’s extended silence on how it plans to solve the funding crisis created by the withdrawal of US aid has thrown much of the health sector in South Africa into severe…
This project is funded by: When entering Stinkwater near Hammanskraal in the north of Pretoria, one is greeted by streets overflowing with excreta and wastewater gushing from clogged manholes. The sight has become a landmark, and residents are accusing the municipality of negligence. Lazarus Matjebe (61) has lived in the area for more than 20 years and says the municipality has not been responsive to their complaints. He says they report the leaking sewage almost daily, but they are given the runaround. Subscribe to our newsletter “There is no progress in this matter. And the children’s health and safety are…
10 Jun SAHPRA undergoes training to strengthen its regulatory capabilities Posted at 15:03h in News & Updates by Melanie Govindasamy 04 June 2025 – The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) recently visited the Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA) at their Cairo Offices for an intensive training programme to capacitate the Regulator on how to achieve recognition for the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Benchmarking Tool (GBT) Maturity Level 3 (Ml3) in medicines. Having signed a Memorandum of Understanding with EDA in 2023, this three-day training allowed for the cross-pollination of knowledge and capacity building on the continent. EDA’s Centre…