Inspirational HIV activist and social entrepreneur Nozibele Qamngama-Mayaba will release her second book on living positively with HIV/Aids via a virtual launch on Wednesday.
Formerly from Gqeberha but now living and working in Gauteng, the storyteller published her autobiography, I Am Still Me, in April 2020 and this week is proud to share her second book, I Am Still Zuri.
“This is a dream come true,” Mayaba said of the book launch, which will take place virtually at noon on Wednesday.
Her tale centres on the story of Zuri — whose name means “beautiful” in Swahili — a little girl born HIV-positive.
“Zuri could be my child. She could be yours.
“While her story is narrated from a perspective of living with HIV, she represents so much more,” she said.
“She represents so many children — children who are differently abled, children with autism, children in wheelchairs, children with vitiligo [patchy loss of skin colour].
“No matter who they are, or the circumstances of their birth, they are still the same.
“They deserve to be protected and loved.”
Mayaba said the reaction to her own story, I Am Still Me, had revealed the need to destigmatise HIV/Aids in children and the new illustrated storybook tackled many of the same issues.
She is being helped by her four-year-old niece, Iminathi Qamngama, who lives with her and her husband, Sikhumbuzo, in Johannesburg.
“Imz [Iminathi] and I are officially launching with a special video on our YouTube channel.
“We are super-excited and cannot wait to share our hearts with you,” she said.
Bright illustrations by graphic designer Loui Lance bring Mayaba’s words to life.
She asked Lance to draw a child who could come from any country but who was based on her own chubby childhood body.
“My vision was this little bundle of cuteness that you just want to pick up and squeeze tight,” Mayaba said.
As well as her books, Mayaba also started a YouTube channel in October 2020 to show how she lived life to the fullest, even with HIV.
Already, it has nearly 140,000 subscribers and several million views.
In 2020, her channel was named by Feedspot as one of the Top 15 HIV YouTube channels on the web.
“It was a natural transition. I Am Still Me was based on my life with HIV and publicly coming out.
“But, as we know, HIV affects and infects not only adults but also children who are born with it.
“In the advocacy work I’ve done, I’ve seen the challenge of caregivers in disclosing not only the status of a child who’s living with HIV, but also their own status.
“The number one issue is not that caregivers don’t want to talk about it, it’s just that they don’t know how.
“HIV has become this complex, coded disease at family gatherings, like an elephant in the room that no-one talks about.”
Mayaba gave the example of how Imz had asked why she took medication.
“I’ll be honest, at first I did not know what to say.
“It took me a while to have the courage to explain in her own language why auntie Nozi needs to take these pills.
“We’ve come to accept HIV as complex, but it does not need to be when it comes to children.
“We need to speak in their language.
“The whole rationale behind the book is having those conversations from an early age.
“The World Health Organisation recommends disclosure can start when a child is seven years old, but I say earlier depending on how you have the conversation.
“It can be a process, where you give more information as they grow.”
A UNAids report showed that nearly half (46%) of the world’s 1.7-million children living with HIV were not on treatment in 2020.
Mayaba was working at Zwide’s Ubuntu Pathways when she learnt of her own HIV status.
“I remember when I was diagnosed in 2013, and no-one knew.
“That’s where I learnt, first-hand, how to take care of myself.”
It took several years before she plucked up the courage to tell her mother, but since then she has been actively educating others.
Her own diagnosis has not deterred her from pursuing her goals.
Among other accolades, she was a Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber top 40 under-40 achiever, a Businesswomen’s Association regional achiever, a Fruits of Democracy award winner and a Vision4Women “Beyond the Balance Sheet” finalist.
She is also an SA International Youth Committee ambassador and an active member of the International Youth Forum.
The marketing graduate also has an honours degree in development studies and empowering others is a key part of her daily life in her position at Wits University, where she works in business development and stakeholder liaison.
- The book retails for R150..
HeraldLIVE
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.