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Food and ARVs: "I will survive..." (multimedia)

Mbula Waema and the youngest of her 10 dependants Allan Gichigi/IRIN
    MAKUENI

    More than 200,000 Kenyans now have access to free antiretroviral (ARV) drugs, but in a country that experiences frequent food shortages, drugs are rarely enough to keep HIV-positive patients healthy.  












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    IRIN/PlusNews visited the homestead of Mbula Waema, an HIV-positive widow living in a district of eastern Kenya hit by a food crisis resulting from drought and crop failure.  



    Mbula receives free ARVs from her local clinic, and is a member of Zingatia Maisha [Swahili for focus on life], an ARV-adherence support group run by the African Medical and Research Foundation.  But while Mbula adheres to the drug prescription, she struggles to feed her 10 dependants - and herself.



    (kr/lt)



    [This article is the fourth part of an IRIN/PlusNews series on "Countdown to Universal Access"]

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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