21 April 2008
Luanda — The Angolan Red Cross (CVA) will promote, as from next May, in the southern Cunene province, a cycle of campaigns aimed at preventing HIV/AIDS infections, ANGOP learnt here from the institution's director general for cooperation and development, Leonardo Bondo.
The project counts on the partnership of the German Red Cross and of the Ministry of Health. It consists on sensitising the population, distribution of condoms and information materials.
Promoted in the light of implementing the project dubbed "partnerships for reducing the impact of HIV/AIDS in rural areas", the campaign covers every district of Cunene.
Meanwhile, a CVA delegation, headed by its secretary general, Walter Kifica, visited Ondjiva city (provincial capital) from April 18 to 19 to assess conditions being created for the start of the project.
According to the official, due to this, the facilities of the Angolan Red Cross, in the region, is being rehabilitated and equipped with computing materials, and the process of training the staff that will participate in the campaign has already started.
The delegation, which also included the representative of the German Red Cross in the Southern African region, Hanna Schnusk, visited Ondjiva's central hospital, the centre of voluntary testing, counselling and medication.
Leonardo Bonbo added that the centre lacks anti-retroviral drugs bearing in mind the vast demand of therapy in the region.
On the other hand, the source praised the behaviour of the population, who face the disease as a normal problem and has been contributing to stop discrimination and the stigma of infected people.
He underlined that the fight against AIDS can only be solved, at first, with the investment for the prevention of this disease, since there provinces where the disease has a high infection rate, such as Cunene, Cabinda, Lunda Norte, Lunda Sul and Luanda, due to their specificness.
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