Mpumalanga Health seminar to address challenges women face
by Riot Hlatshwayo, August 31, 2911
The Mpumalanga department of human settlements will host about 200 women during a health seminar at which issues to do with HIV/Aids and family responsibilities plus other social impact issues will be discussed.
The seminar is scheduled to start at the Ehlanzeni conference centre in Nelspruit tomorrow at 9am.
The provincial department’s human resource staffers have planned to forge a partnership with community stakeholders such as the Cancer Association of South Africa, the department of health, Pinnacle of Health Solutions and other organisations focusing on health in the province during the seminar.
“We believe that the partnership will ponder ways of dealing with the challenges faced by women in their daily lives. Participants will include women employees in the department and other stakeholders in the province,” said the department’s spokesperson, Freddy Ngobe.
He said women were overwhelmed and continued to face daily challenges in trying to balance work and family issues, resulting in high levels of stress and general poor health.
Ngobe added that the challenges had a negative impact on the general development of women and brought down their social competitiveness as well as delivery of services to the community.
“The seminar will also assist to enlighten the women to stand up and empower themselves to be leaders in their communities, now and in the future,” said Ngobe.
Mpumalanga, especially the largely rural Nkomazi area, is known for its high HIV infection rate, with some claiming this was as a result of an influx of illegal immigrants from neighbouring countries.
This eastern part of Mpumalanga is borders both Swaziland and Mozambique and at one stage more than 50% of pregnant women tested positive for HIV/Aids at the clinics, prompting fears that nearly half the population might be infected.
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