„How do local kids percieve AIDS?“ I asked the director of ACET Zimbabwe when I saw so many different kids all around. He answered that they see it as an issue of adults. Girls much more concerns about not to get pregnant.

ACET Zimbabwe consists of 2 leaders and 15 volunteers and annually are able to reach about 10 thousands students. Antiretrovirus medicaments supporting immunity are avaliable in the hospitals. Goverment supports the programme of sexual abstinence in youth age especially.

In 2005, during the konference in Ugandan city of Entebbe we saw a presentation, describing a terrible situation in Zimbabwe: empty graves dug in advance to be soon filled with victimes of AIDS. „Is it still truth here? What is the situation like?“ I keep asking our host.

 „The prevention in the cities is well accessible, people do realize, that HIV is the issue. In rural areas, however, i tis different. What is the result? Kids born with HIV, kids without parents who died of AIDS, kids that see how they parents suffer. If a child finally lives with parents or a single parent still alive, yet infected, it is very difficult to keep going somehow. Mainly because of poverty. No money to buy basic groceries. Peopl die of hunger or have no money to cover medicaments or hospital. The deadly circle is thus completed.

For the first sight, the country is peaceful. Cities are lively, but peaceful, in comparison with different african countries or chaotically built capitals of them. There are 5 places in Zimbabwe belonging to UNESCO cultural herritage. There are deposits of raw materials (gold or platinum). Regardless of all that – poverty, HIV and death. Even at locations, which have a potential to be a prosperous places and local people could have a good conditions for nice living.  When we drove through the area of Victoria Falls, we saw beatiful and legendary water falls, luxurious hotels, attractive events prepared for tourists. However, we have also seen poverty, beggars, people under drug influence, individuals without a goal and values in their lives, hopeless ones. One taxi driver asked us, why we came to Zimbabwe. When we told him, that it was because we deal with project related to HIV/AIDS, he tol dus: in this area, the prevalence is 40 percent among adults here. This info remained us breathless. I tis almost a double of Zimbabwean average.

I again have to think about kids happily eating the porridge and especially two of those who came to me and looked directly, yet with fear, into my eyes. These kids were born with HIV. Their fathers infected their mothers and mother gave birth to them. This is the story of more than 20 milion people all around subsaharan Africa.

I often answer the question what is the purpose of helping in Africa. I tis just a little drop in teh ocean of troubles and poverty. Do not we have alone a lot to deal with our own troubles? I could quote answer of staff from ACET Zimbabwe: „Your help ha s a tremendous positive impact on local communities.“ Look at it in a following way: investment into the life and education of a tiny child gives purpose to his/her future. African kids miss models for their lives. They do not have cars, houses – but they dream of becoming physicians, teachers or sportsmen. Absolutely – after I saw many kids longing for their dreams coming true I can say, this influence is tremendous. We can help them to reach their goals. We can help to dicover the desires of their hearts and than go to make it happen. Is not that a beautiful perspective?

Well, we do have our troubles. We fight serious battles ourselves! Some of our troubles just appear as a result of our continuous desire to have more. I relaized on our travels, that once we decide to help someone else, we can find out, that some of our difficulties are tiny in comparison with those ones presented in Africa. We can’t help to all who is in need, but we can help at least a little one, who will b eone day able to make his or her dream true. It is an investment, that can not be devalueted.