Selebi-Phikwe — The number of patients on the anti-retroviral therapy is expected to almost double in the next eight years to 220,600 up from 145,000, President Ian Khama has said.

Speaking yesterday at the World AIDS Day commemorations in Selebi-Phikwe, Khama said that the figure is expected to escalate by nearly 100 percent in 2016, going by the current rate of infection.

Khama said the government will continue to explore more effective and efficient ways to deliver treatment.

He stated that in 2001, there were 110,000 patients on ARV but the number is estimated to have risen to 145,000. He said that at the end of September, 113,000 HIV patients had been treated.

"Our ARV treatment coverage in absolute numbers has been consistently increasing since its inception largely due to the roll-out of the programme to the more remote areas of the country," Khama said. He stated that 81 satellite clinics offered ARVs on site as at the end of September.

As part of its efforts to deliver treatment, Khama said the government is tapping the excess capacity in the private sector to build sustainable partnerships for improved service delivery.

"We are thus outsourcing to the private sector to save more lives." He said the rollout of ARV therapy has averted 50,000 adult deaths by the end of 2007.

This translates to 130,000 deaths to be averted by 2016. Khama said the success of the ARV treatment has reduced AIDS related mortality.

He urged individuals to play an active role in the prevention of the spread of HIV/AIDS and each citizen on treatment should be responsible and accountable to the taxpayer, as taxes are used to sponsor the ARV programme. "The nation demands that every citizen must access treatment on time and all on treatment must adhere. This calls for individual discipline," Khama said.

He said there were significant successes in the prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV. Between 1999 to date, out of 100 children born to HIV positive women, the number born free of the virus has increased from 60 to 96 due to therapy.

"This, coupled with the average enrolment of close to 90 percent, gives us hope that we are gradually approaching achievement of our goal of an HIV free generation."

He said it has been planned that all pregnant women living with HIV/AIDS, would be put on the Highly Active Anti Retroviral Therapy in the next financial year.

Despite successes in prevention and treatment, Khama expressed concerned at the low number of people who have tested for HIV, which stands at 60 percent.