My Experience with the American Foundation for Children with AIDS
Chloee Lynch
Staff Writer
According to UNAIDS, there are over 1.3 million adults and children living with HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe, a country with one of the highest levels of HIV/AIDS in the world. In 2024, Zimbabwe was achieving significant milestones in accordance with the UNAIDS 95-95-95 fast track targets in combating the AIDS epidemic. This success was heavily dependent on foreign aid, especially on the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a United States-led initiative against HIV, AIDS, Malaria, and Tuberculosis. However, due to President Trump’s 90-day pause on U.S. foreign aid and the complete dissolution of USAID on July 1, 2025, PEPFAR lost about 60% of its bilateral assistance in Zimbabwe, according to The Lancet. Reports from ASFI Research state the U.S. is estimated to have invested over $100 billion into the global HIV/AIDS crisis. The freeze of financial support threatens to undo decades of progress in affected regions.
This past summer, I worked with the American Foundation for Children with AIDS (AFCA) in Zimbabwe and saw firsthand the impacts of the recent events. According to the World Health Organization, the leading cause of death in Zimbabwe is HIV/AIDS. The Centers for Disease Control reports HIV, or human immunodeficiency virus, is a preventable and treatable disease that affects the body’s immune system, leaving the body susceptible to infections and illnesses. HIV’s transition into AIDS happens in three stages: Acute HIV infection, Chronic HIV Infection, and finally, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). People with AIDS typically survive three years after the transition.
When I first landed in Zimbabwe, it was after completing a prior internship in Bavaria, Germany, where I lived on a commune and did research in agricultural sustainability. From this experience, I got used to the time difference and had been engaging in farm work my whole summer. We first visited the Zimbabwean bush, the Metopes, and worked on a goat farm. AFCA supported this farm in bringing in multiple teams for labor and fundraising. The farm ran a program where it gave families in the community three pregnant female goats after they completed a course on how to raise goats into a successful herd. One woman was so successful that she was able to send all her children to school and buy a new house, simply because of the goats from the program.
During this time, I was able to connect with the AIDS crisis happening in Zimbabwe. There are about fifty children in the Matopos community who are HIV positive and receive no medication. UNAIDS reports that this was due to the lack of anti-retroviral (ARV) medication, currently in a severe shortage directly caused by the USAID shutdown. The abrupt withdrawal of all aid by the U.S. left the government and organizations scrambling, with BCC News reporting that numerous HIV-treatment and prevention programs have been stopped and clinics have shut down. Simply describing the current environment, people are dying. Children and adults are contracting severe bacterial infections, lymphomas, meningitis, tuberculosis, and more because of a deficiency in life-saving medication that the U.S. is directly involved in.
The second part of my time in Zimbabwe involved working in Children’s Homes, where I interacted with the children and assisted with construction projects. Some work AFCA completes in these homes is kept confidential for the protection of the children. One of the public projects underway is the construction of greenhouses. A big principle behind AFCA and a reason I am enthusiastic about their work is the end goal of self-sustainability. The dependency theory is well known within the international community as it perpetuates underdevelopment in countries that become reliant on developed countries’ aid, such as USAID, according to Africanus. If that aid is sporadically withdrawn, as seen currently, it can create a power vacuum and increase instability in the political, economic, and social spheres. AFCA helps these children’s homes in building greenhouses and training community members and the kids on how to successfully run these homes. Each house can grow over two thousand pounds of food, such as tomatoes, lettuce, and more. The homes use a portion of the produce for their own food production and then can sell the rest to generate income not dependent on the government.
When I discuss my summer with my peers, I find a lack of education on HIV awareness, especially when compared to previous generations. There seems to be a knowledge gap regarding the epidemic happening in numerous sub-Saharan countries. The HIV and AIDS crisis is not disappearing soon; instead, it is ramping up due to medication shortages and aid suspension. I strongly encourage my peers to educate themselves about these issues and continue to push for foreign aid to be sent to these countries.
Below is the link to AFCA’s website to learn more about their work: https://www.afcaids.org/
