NAMIBIA: Hard of hearing neglected by HIV/AIDS information campaigns

JOHANNESBURG, 3 Oct 2005 (PLUSNEWS) - The Namibian National Association for the Deaf (NNAD) has raised concerns over poor accessibility to HIV/AIDS information by Namibia's hearing impaired.

Martin Tjivera, Executive Director of the NNAD, last week welcomed a N$5000 (US $790) donation from the Road Fund Administration (RFA) and said it would be used to extend HIV/AIDS information campaigns tailored to meet the requirements of Namibia's deaf, the New Era newspaper reported.

He said the information obtainable via conventional media was very limited and he feared that many remained uninformed about the dangers and available prevention measures. "Sometimes, television does not have any sign language interpreter for such programmes, while most people cannot read the high English words in newspapers," Tjivera commented.

Penda Kiiyala, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the RFA, noted, "If HIV/AIDS is so difficult to control generally in Namibia, then it must be an extra challenge for hearing impaired people."

[ENDS]