A general résumé of the HIV and AIDS epidemic in Zimbabwe

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A brief trajectory of HIV and the AIDS epidemic in Zimbabwe

The previous section provided brief highlights of the traditional beliefs and practices of the Shona people of the Chipinge District. This section proceeds by providing a brief trajectory of the HIV and AIDS epidemic in Zimbabwe in general, and that of the Chipinge District in particular. A United Nations report stated that the first reported case of AIDS in Zimbabwe occurred in 1985 (Mabhunu 2013:86; UNAIDS: 2005:20). Statistical projections indicated that by the end of the 1980s, HIV had infected about10% of the adult population. Perhaps, because of inadequate health management systems and budgetary constraints, this figure rose dramatically in the first half of the 1990s, peaking and stabilising at 29% between 1995 and 1997.28 It is worth noting that the epidemic is driven mostly by heterosexual sex transmission, which accounts for 92% of all infections. Transmission through homosexuality is rare because of the Zimbabwe Government’s anti-homosexual stance (Garbus & Khumalo-Sakutukwa 2003:5).
Records indicate that 1.3 million people were living with HIV and that AIDS claimed the lives of 200 000 adults and children in 2001 in Zimbabwe alone (Garbus & Khumalo-Sakutukwa 2003:20). The records indicate that AIDS-related complications became a leading cause of death in Zimbabwe for the 15 to 49 age groups. An online Averting HIV and AIDS (Avert) publication entitled Introduction to HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe stated that one in every seven adult lives with HIV.29 These statistics, therefore, made Zimbabwe “… one of the world’s most severely AIDS-stricken countries” (Patterson 2005:61).
However, there are also reports of a decline in HIV prevalence in Zimbabwe since 1997, making it one of the first African countries to witness such a trend. According to government figures, by 2003, the estimated adult (aged 15-49) prevalence rate was 24.6%, but it fell to 15.3% in 2007 (UNAIDS 2010:25, 28, 68; Chipunza 2007:2; Patterson 2005:61; Ministry of Health and Child Welfare 2004).

CHAPTER 1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Background and rationale for the study
1.3 Statement of the problem
1.4 Aims and objectives of the study
1.5 Justification of the study
1.6 Delimitation of study
1.7 Ethical considerations
1.8 Constraints
1.9 Theoretical framework
1.10 Literature review
1.11 Research methodology
1.13 Conclusion
CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
2.1 Introduction
2.2 A review of the Shona Indigenous Religion, selected traditional practices and beliefs
2.3 A general résumé of the HIV and AIDS epidemic in Zimbabwe
2.4 A résumé of the HIV and AIDS epidemic in the Chipinge District
2.5 Theoretical framework
2.6 Conclusion
CHAPTER 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Research design
3.3 The study population
3.4 Sample.
3.5 Data collection procedures and strategies.
3.6 Data presentation and analysis
3.7 Validity and reliability of the study
3.8 Limitations of the stud
3.9 Conclusion
CHAPTER 4 RESEARCH FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS OF DATA
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Demographic data
4.2.1 Traditional leaders
4.2.2 Demographic data for the rest of the participants
4.3 Perceptions regarding the causes of HIV transmission and the AIDS pandemic
4.4 Perceptions regarding the traditional beliefs and practices of the Shona people in the Chipinge District
4.5 Modifications to the Shona traditional practices and beliefs in light of HIV
4.6 Conclusion
CHAPTER 5 SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS
5.1 Introduction
5.3 Suggested modifications to the Shona traditional practices and beliefs in the HIV milieu
5.4 Conclusions about the research problem
5.5 Implications for the phenomenological theory
5.6 Implications for policy and practice
5.7 Limitations.
5.8 Further research
5.9 Conclusion