Jennifer Chen

Jennifer Chen is the manager at Shinning Century Textiles in Maseru and the former president of the Lesotho Textile Employers Association. “HIV-AIDS is one of the biggest threats to the industry,” she says.

The Lesotho Textile Employers Association is driving the programme across the industry, tackling issues such as facilitating the ALAFA programme at the factory place and supporting practices and policies of non-discrimination in terms of hiring, compensation, access to training, promotion, termination and retirement.

“A few years ago people were so afraid of those who were infected with the virus that they were isolated and shunned. Since the roll-out of the pilot and the measures to combat ignorance, more people are beginning to understand what HIV actually means. This has allowed employees to open up and to realise there is a life after being diagnosed with HIV”

Jennifer comes from Taiwan, where she completed her studies at an economics college. She moved to Lesotho in 1989 and has been living there ever since.

Shinning Century employs about 4 300 workers. The ALAFA pilot project was first rolled out at this factory. The factory has an in-house clinic and doctors. This makes treatment convenient for staff.

“In a factory that manufactures produced apparel it is a great loss to have sick or absent employees, says Jennifer. “With ALAFA, education, prevention and treatment is now being offered to the ground working staff. All workers have the right to be looked after and all the necessary provisions should be made for them.”

“The social responsibility to tackle this problem needs to be shared,” says Jennifer. “We would like to thank the international donors for their contribution so this project can move forward.”