‘Mantṧali Phakoana
Lesotho’s adult HIV prevalence continues to fuel concerns over the welfare of children who lose parents to the epidemic.
This is evidenced by the fact that such children are left in the care of their old and already frail grandmothers who play the roles of parents and guardians.
According to the 2020 Lesotho Population-based HIV/AIDS Impact Assessment’s (LePHIA) figures, the overall HIV prevalence in Lesotho among females aged 15-49 stands at 27.9 percent.
Among this group, HIV prevalence ranged from 3.9 percent for older adolescent girls aged 15-19 years, compared to 2.5 percent among boys the same age) to 46.5 percent for women aged 40-44 years, compared to 37.2 percent among men the same age.
Based on the LePHIA 2020 data, HIV prevalence was consistently higher among women than men in each five-year age group from ages 15-19 years through 60-64 years.
Additionally, adolescent girls aged 15-24 years are an immediate concern due to high levels of new HIV infections, which increased by 1.7 percent in 2017 to 2.5 percent in 2020.
However, independent bodies like charity and community empowerment organisation Help Lesotho understand the need for programmes to address the emotional needs of orphaned children and ways to prepare grandmothers for the caretaker duties.
In 2007, three years after its arrival in Lesotho, the organisation introduced a ‘grandmother support programme’ which supports elderly caretakers aged 50 and above.
According to Help Lesotho Grandmother Programme officer, ‘Mampaka Kunene, the project became a supporting mechanism to the organisation’s initial programmes sponsoring vulnerable and orphaned high school pupils, especially those who lost their parents to the epidemic.
Kunene says the programme aims to help grandmothers overcome their grief, despair and anger so they are able to support one another, in the process improving their lives and the future of their grandchildren.
The grandmothers attend monthly life skills training days where they receive psychological support.
In addition to the training, they also receive items such as blankets, food parcels and solar lanterns.
“Since the government of Lesotho through ministry of social development committed to sponsoring double orphans, our role was made easier as we now focus on sponsoring single orphans and vulnerable children,” Kunene explains.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) states that over 60, 000 orphans benefit directly from a landmark partnership sealed by itself, the government of Lesotho through the social development ministry, and the European Commission.
“Renewing its commitment to the children of Lesotho, the government launched a programme, funded by the European Commission with a donation of about M107.5 million to assist orphans and vulnerable children, mainly affected by the impact of HIV and AIDS,”
a UNICEF report said.
The ministries of health, and education and training, in close collaboration with UNICEF are the key stakeholders in the implementation of the programme.
For the current cycle that commenced in 2022, Kunene indicates that 200 grandmothers have enrolled on the six-month long programme.
They share ideas on areas such as: self-esteem, communication skills, HIV/AIDs, gender-based violence, nutrition, grief and loss, anger management, conflict resolution, child development, human rights and leadership.
“Grandmothers are the key support structure for children in Lesotho and are essential to their every day’s lives. The protective effect of living with a grandmother is also important for vulnerable children whose mothers are alive but struggling to make ends meet.
“With so many children left orphaned by HIV/AIDS, grandmothers have filled the role of parents and guardians. Lesotho is one of the many countries in sub-Saharan Africa where grandmothers have been recognised as particularly important caregivers,” Kunene says.
She further states that as old as they are, grandmothers have the knowhow and unique opportunity to support their grandchildren to become well educated future leaders.
Moreover, she says, some of the grandmothers do not seem to notice when their grandchildren become teenagers, therefore their role is to equip them to look out for such stages and understand how to approach them.
One such grandmother is 70-year old ‘Mapalama Sekipe of Ntṧirele Nokong, in the Berea district who is raising an 11-year old girl.
Sekipe says raising a girl child was never easy, until she joined the Grandmothers’ Programme in September 2022.
“As a pre-teen, there is a lot going on in my granddaughter’s life; her behaviour keeps changing. Sometimes she arrives home late. This kind of behavior made me furious. As a result, I would raise my voice at her unaware that I was only making things worse.
“However, since I joined the Help Lesotho programme, I have learned that being careful with my tone and using respectful words with a child is more effective at getting my point across.
“Today’s children are no longer behaving like us; when you shout at them, you make them wilder and end up making bad choices in their lives,” she says.
Sekipe also notes that being part of the Help Lesotho family has helped her grow as she is now able to socialise with others at her age. And she now knows how to save money, something she never practiced before.
Before joining the programme, she would just stay at home alone and think about a lot of things without anyone to socialise with.
She was now happy to be part of the support programme because she acquired a lot of information which will help her through life.
For instance, the ‘healthy versus unhealthy relationships’ session helped her to build a stronger relationship with her grandchild and become a better communicator.
“At our age, we are now the role models in our villages. I hope other grandmothers would join this programme so they experience this moment while they are still alive. That way, the education and information we acquired can spread all over the country,” Sekipe says.
Another participant, 76-year old ‘Malereko Tlakafo of Khoaba-Khoaba, Pitseng in the Leribe district says the death of her six children and husband left her shattered. That was until she joined Help Lesotho’s Grandmother Programme.
She says she is only left with one daughter and four grandchildren whom she prays for every day.
“The ‘life skills sessions’ from this programme have given me new hope and helped me to grieve, although this is a new journey from September last year. But I believe I will be fine eventually.
“I had never known how important I was until the ‘self-esteem session’, which made me appreciate life and my family. My family entirely depends on my small M800 pension pay-out but because I have learned about good relationships with both neighbours and loved ones, I always share the little I have.
“I love this programme and because of it, I now have a blanket to keep me warm and a lantern light to brighten my home without having to buy paraffin or a candle. I feel rich at heart and have found healing,” Tlakafo says.
