HARARE, June 8, 2008 (AFP) - Zimbabwe's suspension of aid work before a presidential run-off will especially hurt HIV patients in the country, which has been hard hit by AIDS, a national association of NGOs said Sunday.
"One cruel direct impact of the ban will be that people living with HIV/AIDS will increasingly die since many NGOs provide assistance in form of home-based care and anti-retroviral medication to them," said the National Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (NANGO).
Zimbabwe is among the countries most affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, with an estimated 3,000 people dying weekly from AIDS-related illness, according to the National AIDS Council.
The concerns about HIV patients is in addition to those regarding food, and charities have warned the impoverished country may be facing a humanitarian crisis.
Many Zimbabweans, particularly in rural areas, rely on food aid due to shortages of basic commodities such as cooking oil and cornmeal.
"The crisis deepens daily due to skyrocketing food prices and bad harvest," NANGO said.
The United Nations' humanitarian affairs bureau OCHA has said the ban, at a time of deteriorating food security in Zimbabwe, would disrupt the delivery of humanitarian aid and hit more than four million Zimbabweans who rely on it.
The UN children's charity UNICEF also warned that more than 185,000 children would miss the essential support they need, including healthcare and nutrition, describing the move by Harare as a violation of children's rights.
The government's move to suspend all aid work came last week after it accused NGOs of siding with the opposition ahead of the June 27 presidential run-off election.
Movement for Democratic Change opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai is seeking to topple President Robert Mugabe's 28-year reign over the country in the vote.
Tsvangirai defeated Mugabe in the first round of the election, but officially with a vote total just short of an outright majority.
Violence has mounted in the lead up to the run-off, and NANGO said thousands of Zimbabweans have been internally displaced and are struggling to survive and in need of assistance.
NANGO represents 1,009 both local and international NGOs.
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