Freetown — Director national HIV/AIDS secretariat, NAS, yesterday disclosed in Freetown that over 260,000 people nationwide have been tested so far for HIV/AIDS.

Dr. Brima Kargbo told his audience at a women's health programme organized by the American embassy that majority of those tested for the virus did it voluntarily, noting that testing centres have been established across the country.

"At present, we have 258 voluntary and testing sites for people to know their status. It is important for people to ascertain whether they are HIV positive or not," he said adding that 4, 017 Sierra Leoneans were presently receiving anti-retroviral while the epidemic was stabilizing.

"HIV/AIDS is a serious threat to national development. The prevalence of the disease stands at 1.5% since 2005," he said.

American ambassador to Sierra Leone June Carter Perry said at every stage of life it was essential for people to know their HIV status.

She said because Sierra Leone has low cost and no-cost anti-retroviral therapy in abundance and advances in technology have made living positively with HIV possible, every individual should take charge and get tested.

"Many women still believe that HIV diagnosis means that having healthy children is impossible. With proper treatment, mother to child transmission of HIV is 100% preventable," she said.

Ambassador Perry said a single dose of nevarapine could prevent HIV transmission from the mother to the unborn baby.