Source: Two Bulawayo suburbs flagged as HIV hotspots -Newsday Zimbabwe
BULAWAYO, Jun 2,2026 (NewsDay Live) – The National AIDS Council (NAC) says it has identified Old Magwegwe and Old Pumula high-density suburbs as having higher HIV prevalence rates due to socio-economic conditions associated with overcrowding and cheaper accommodation.
Speaking during a media engagement programme tour at Silwane Youth Centre in Old Pumula, NAC Magwegwe district coordinator Kenneth Ncube said the organisation had identified several hotspots through attendance registers, testing programmes and community interventions.
“If you go to our registers, you will find that these are the areas with bigger HIV prevalence. You can tell from the attendance registers who the people we are supporting are and where they are coming from,” said Ncube.
He said the observations were further confirmed through HIV testing exercises being carried out in communities.
“We are testing people, we are getting HIV-positive cases, and they are coming from those areas. That directs us to say those are our hotspots,” he said.
Ncube said NAC initially concentrated on identified hotspots before expanding programmes into other wards.
“Those are the areas where we thought our interventions would have a stronger impact before we spread to other locations,” he explained.
He said the higher HIV prevalence in some suburbs was not necessarily linked to the age of the settlements, but rather the socio-economic conditions found in densely populated communities.
“It has nothing to do with them being old locations. It is more about the higher population density and the kind of social conditions found there,” Ncube said.
“So if you have a higher density of population, you also tend to have cheaper accommodation, and that attracts a certain class of people who may be more vulnerable due to economic hardships and limited access to services.”
Ncube said the findings help NAC direct resources and interventions to communities most affected by HIV in order to improve prevention, treatment and support services.
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