Many different approaches to tackling HIV/AIDS in Africa

Former South African president Thabo Mbeki (1999 - 2008) went down in history as the foremost African denier of AIDS. Against all scientific evidence he maintained that HIV did not cause AIDS. He instructed his health officials to combat the disease with herbal remedies. Experts believe his denialism cost up to 300,000 lives. Some have called for Mbeki to be tried for crimes against humanity.

In 2007 former Gambian president Yahya Jammeh (1996 - 2017) forced AIDS patients to undergo a cure that he had personally developed. It turned out to be a concoction based on herbs; an unknown number of people died. Jammeh, who claimed that he had mystic powers, is the first African head of state to be tried for violating the rights of HIV-positive people.

Another former South African head of state to make headlines for an unconventional take on AIDS was Jacob Zuma (2009 - 2018). After being charged with raping an HIV-positive woman in 2006, Zuma said he was not at risk of infection, despite not using a condom, because he had "taken a shower afterwards." In 2010 he disclosed the negative results of his AIDS test, to fight the stigma, he said.

Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni took his time before joining the fight against the epidemic. As late as 2004, during an international AIDS conference in Thailand, he downplayed the effectiveness of condoms, alleging, among other things, that they ran counter to some African sexual practices. "We don’t think we can become universally condomised," he said. His remarks were met with laughter.

Some action taken by African heads of state to fight the scourge did not go down well at home. A tax introduced in 1999 by Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe (1987-2017) to help orphans and sufferers met with resistance. It is still in place today. In 2004 Mugabe admitted that his own family had been affected by AIDS. He said the disease was "one of the greatest challenges facing our nation."

Fear of economic repercussions affecting, for example, tourism, is one reason why African leaders have been reluctant to acknowledge the threat. But President Kenneth Kaunda of Zambia (1964-1991) announced as early as 1987 that one of his sons had died of AIDS. In 2002 he was the first African leader to take an AIDS test. He still fights against AIDS today.

The fight against AIDS by Kaunda’s successor Edgar Lungu met with some hitches when he tried to make AIDS-testing compulsory in Zambia. Lungu said in 2016 that the policy was non-negotiable. But a huge outcry in Zambia and abroad forced him to backpedal especially as the World Health Organization made clear that compulsion encourages the stigmatization of HIV-positive people.

After leaving office, Festus Mogae, former president of Botswana (1998-2008), launched Champions for an AIDS-Free Generation, which brings together a number of former African presidents and other influential personalities eager to help fight the scourge. They hope that their experience and influence will enable them to exert pressure on governments and partners to invest in AIDS prevention.