By Nangamso Mabindla
2 December 2005

BUFFALO City Municipality joined World Aids Day commemorations by launching its Employee Wellness Programme at a packed East London City Hall on Thursday, December 1.

The programme, developed after the municipality undertook an Employee HIV Prevalence Study in 2004, aims to deal with the effect of HIV and Aids on City councillors and employees.

Speaking at the launch, Mayor Sindisile Maclean said he was happy that the programme was launched on World Aids Day and that it kept in line with the theme Keeping the promise.

"This is an award-winning programme and it focuses on creating HIV and Aids awareness in the workplace."

He said there had been progress in the City's fight against HIV and Aids. "This is a cross-cutting issue and all municipal departments are affected in different ways. We need to start making things happen here in our own municipality."

If not checked, HIV and Aids could hinder the City's quest to deliver services to its people. "If we do not assist our employees how do we expect them to be efficient in their work? This award-winning wellness programme will ensure that our staff is healthy and able to deliver services."

Health officials at the launch of the City's wellness programme

Maclean appealed to the City's 5 000 employees to make the wellness programme a success.

Corporate services director Amanda Magwentshu agreed with the mayor, saying the city was committed to fighting HIV and Aids.

"We need to prevent Aids by going for testing, voluntary counselling, education and by getting information on the pandemic. With this wellness programme we aim to encourage our employees to do just that," she said.

By being educated about the pandemic, the City's employees would be in a better position to educate people from their communities.

However, despite the progress made by the municipality in the fight against HIV and Aids, there were still areas that needed to be dealt with, Magwentshu said.

"We need to address the question of resources. We cannot win the fight without resources. We also need to give treatment to our employees. But we really need to put resources in place if we aim to be successful."