As part of the national multi-sectoral approach to HIV and AIDS, private sector organisations have a key role to play in scaling up HIV prevention, care, treatment and support. Yet to date, the response has been ad hoc and uncoordinated. Few organisations and sub-sectors have successfully developed comprehensive workplace policies and programmes addressing HIV prevention, care, support and treatment. The majority still need to engage in meaningful dialogue and action on HIV and AIDS as a workplace issue.

The purpose of this document is to provide guidance to government and non governmental sectors and scientific groups in Zimbabwe working with international regional and national stakeholders and communities in the development and evaluation of candidate vaccines relevant to Zimbabwe. The guidelines are to be used by authorities responsible for the approval, coordination and supervision of candidate vaccine tries in the country. It provides useful resources to members of scientific and review committees as well as national medicines regulatory and biosafety authorities in regulating HIV vaccine trials in Zimbabwe.

This Behavioural Change Strategy therefore provides guidance to all stakeholders on their contributions to behavioural change promotion over the period from 2006 to 2010. It spells out key expected outputs and areas of focus necessary for achieving results. It strengthens successful elements of the past response like promotion of condom use, but also focuses on new key aspects. Epidemiological evidence shows that reducing multiple partnering including promotion of faithfulness in marriage and other long-term relationships has to be in the centre of behavioural change promotion. Underlying root causes of risk behaviours like imbalanced gender relations and stigma associated with HIV will be addressed. Decentralized behavioural change planning and involvement of leadership at district and community levels are core elements of the Strategy. The key areas of focus are the same as those outlined in the National Strategic Plan on HIV and AIDS. Focusing on these key areas will result in more concerted efforts and is likely to make a greater impact.

The aim of this policy is to provide colleges and institutions of higher learning with a standard framework, and guidelines for the implementation programmes. As part of the multisectoral response to addressing HIV and AIDS, this policy serves as The Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education's response to effectively address the epidemic. The ministry and community within teachers' colleges agreed that there is need for a sectoral policy to deal with this epidemic.

HIV has impacted on all types and sizes of enterprises: the public, private and informal sectors; small, medium and large enterprises; donor agencies; non-governmental and Government bodies. No workplace is untouched. The epidemic causes increased absenteeism, higher rates of staff turnover, increased operational costs (funeral benefits, health care costs, etc.); all of which result in a decline in productivity. For the private sector, HIV has a direct impact on profitability and ultimately affects the wider economic climate in which companies operate.