Reuters AlertNet – SWAZILAND: New role for men in HIV/AIDS fight: “MBABANE, 11 May (IRIN) – Health officials called it the largest gathering of males to ever attend an antenatal lecture in Swaziland, and a sign of the increasing participation of men in programmes aimed at mitigating the impact of HIV/AIDS. About 200 men and 100 women from the Ngculwini area, in the central Manzini region, attended the launch on Sunday of the ‘Happy Baby Healthy Family’ initiative, aimed at preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

They sat on the ground, listening to health motivators talk about how to prevent HIV/AIDS and the necessity of HIV blood tests, and watched a demonstration of the rapid response pinprick method.

The Ngculwini meeting was a complete contrast to previous community meetings, when men stayed away but told their wives to attend if HIV/AIDS was going to be discussed. ‘In my five years here, I have never seen men outnumber women at a health meeting,’ said Alan Brody, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Swaziland Representative.”