04 Sep 2025

Church leaders have been urged to continue praying for HIV/AIDS and other significant social issues impacting Botswana.

Speaking during the official launch of the Month of Prayer in Serowe on Tuesday, Ms Dziidzo Leshiba, a nurse at Serowe district council said September was a special month for all Batswana to pray for HIV/AIDS and other social ills. She said that the 2025 Month of Prayer Against HIV/AIDS and other social ills, under the theme: By His Grace, Generation Now, Our Future Responsibility, End AIDS, underscored the important role that church-led prayers had played in Botswana’s tractability against HIV/AIDS.

She called for determination and strength in prayer echoed throughout the community during the launch of the Month of Prayer.

Ms Leshiba noted that alcohol and drug abuse were regarded as the major root cause of social ills such as the now prevalent gender-based violence (GBV). 

She also said non-communicable diseases (NCDs) referred to a group of conditions that were not mainly caused by an acute infection, result in long-term health consequences and often create a need for long-term treatment and care. 

These conditions include cancers, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and chronic lung illnesses.

She also NCDs were the leading cause of death worldwide and present a huge threat to health and development, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.

Ms Letshiba said that interventions for controlling NCDs included blood glucose through a combination of diet, physical activity and medication if necessary, controlling blood pressure and lipids to reduce cardiovascular risk and other complications, and regular screening for eye, kidney and foot damage to facilitate early treatment.

Sergeant Oarabile Tom from Gender and Child Protection unit at Serowe police station said Botswana, like many modern societies, was battling a troubling rise in social ills, substance abuse among the youth, early pregnancies, school dropouts, crime, GVB and a general erosion of respect and morality.

Sgt Tom indicated that social and behaviour change approaches had the potential to address challenges in areas such as health, HIV, education, and child protection by helping in changing attitudes, beliefs and behaviours. He said they were concerned about rape, defilement, murder, threaten to kill, assault and domestic violence cases.  He added that GBV cases gave them headache, more especially that some of the victims withdrew cases. ENDS