Harare Mayor Mafume Responds After Citizen Raises Concerns Over ARVs Shortage

Harare Mayor Mafume Responds After Citizen Raises Concerns Over ARVs Shortage – Jacob Mafume has responded to concerns raised by a caregiver who claimed that a four-year-old child living with HIV failed to access medication at Budiriro 1 Poly Clinic due to alleged shortages.

The caregiver shared that she is looking after her late sister’s child, who was born HIV positive after the child’s mother passed away two years ago.

According to the caregiver, they visited Budiriro 1 Poly Clinic on Monday to collect the child’s antiretroviral medication but were allegedly informed that the medicine was out of stock.

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“We also checked at a pharmacy and were told that each bottle of the medication costs US$50,” the caregiver said while asking if other people were facing similar challenges.

In response to the concerns, Mafume said the City of Harare had engaged the clinic over the matter and established that there were no reported shortages of paediatric or adult ART medication.

“The clinic has confirmed that there have been no reported stock-outs of either paediatric or adult ART regimens. For the four-year-old child in question, a DTG-based paediatric regimen is available,” said Mafume.

He added that the situation appeared to have resulted from a communication problem at the clinic.

“Appears to have been a communication issue. The caregiver is kindly requested to bring the child back to the clinic so that appropriate assistance can be provided,” he said.

The matter sparked discussion on social media, with some people expressing concern over access to life-saving medication for children living with HIV.