"So, on January 24, when Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a memo calling for stop work orders on all existing foreign aid awards, Chondwe watched in horror as many of the U.S.-funded HIV clinics in and around Kitwe suddenly locked their doors. For Chondwe, that conjured up nightmarish memories of the 1980s, '90s and early 2000s, when HIV had decimated his community."
""It brought back what we felt [then]: despair, hopelessness. It was like a rewind," he said in April. Today that sense of hopelessness has been replaced by a sense of determination and a good deal more hope. While the present is still hard and the future is far from certain, he says, there has been improvement thanks to the Zambian government. "We are welcomed and we are helped""
U.S. foreign aid stop-work orders in January caused many U.S.-funded HIV clinics around Kitwe, Zambia, to suddenly close, leaving people without antiretroviral medications. Several HIV-positive individuals began reporting symptoms including weakness, fatigue, fever and sweats as treatment access evaporated. Pastor Billiance Chondwe feared a return to the 1980s–2000s era when HIV decimated his community and killed his twin sister. By August, government intervention had improved the situation, restoring some services and outreach to affected communities. Those living with HIV in Kitwe report renewed access to care and assistance from Zambian authorities. Uncertainty about long-term stability of treatment access remains.
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