"Six months ago, a girl named Agnes in the remote village of Pampaida in Nigeria was born free of HIV despite the fact her mother was HIV-positive. This happened because her mother sought prenatal care, and an alert health worker in her community health system was there to provide HIV testing and counselling services. Across the continent in Uganda, a woman named Princess is now 20 years old and healthy, despite living with HIV since birth, thanks to access to antiretroviral therapy. Once again, her family and community deserve the primary credit.

"Yet others, far from Nigeria and Uganda, stepped up as well. The people of many countries have played a key part in these stories. Agnes and Princess are among the tens of millions of lives that have been transformed because of the collective AIDS effort of communities, governments, and civil society organisations.

"The global AIDS response over the past decade is one of the greatest public health achievements in history. A few years ago, most people thought what has now been done was impossible. In truth, the AIDS response has always been characterised by a can-do spirit, defying perceived limitations, beating the odds and finding a way forward.

"Once again, we are at a crossroads in the global AIDS response. Far from giving up or turning back, this is the time to learn from our experience, roll up our sleeves, and get the job done".

This was the submission of Ambassador Eric Goosby, Michel Kazatchkine, Jeffrey D. Sachs, Dr. Aaron Motsoaledi, Michel Sidibé, and Tachi Yamada, M.D. at the ongoing International AIDS Conference in Vienna Austria.

Perhaps in response to this call, one man, Oladipo Obisesan, the author of the book 'Living Without AIDS' has described his effort to stem the tide of HIV/AIDS as one that should be primarily situated within the family.

Obisesan's approach at defining the place of HIV/AIDS as well as where to begin tackling it made him to rest the greatest of the burden on the family rather than the society or the individual alone in a 153-page book.

Explaining in the prologue and during an interactive session recently, he said, "One afternoon during my mandatory National Youth Service, after my group had ended a discussion with some group of students on Health particularly on HIV/AIDS, I was moved in my spirit by the level of ignorance and deep lack of knowledge among the students that it dawned on me that indeed HIV/AIDS was a battle that must be won within the family.

"The realisation created a burden in my spirit...as I realised that youths in remote environments might not have access to a life saving information on AIDS, and it settled strongly on my spirit to at least produced a pamphlet that can be distributed to those in the remote areas."

How then does the family become the centre point or cornerstone of information on HIV/AIDS?

Obisesan after exploring into the understanding of the concept of HIV/AIDS, what it is and what it is not, as well as how to acquire or not acquire, delved chiefly into the parental role in the fight against AIDS in the seventh chapter of the book.

According to Obisesan, "parents are faced with one of the most demanding and rewarding tasks in today's civilised world, in which HIV/AIDS is rampant.

"Successful parenting can only be accomplished through total submission to the will of God and putting your faith on this prophetic promise.

"We need divine help and divine wisdom, as many forces are battling for the minds and bodies of children as they transit from adolescence into adulthood", he stated.

He identified a missing link between godly counsel and parental role to children saying while God ordered parent to counsel children in wisdom of God, He equally ordered that parent must command their children through their own responsible actions to follow the divine guidelines.

"In other words, since blood is life and since it has been proven that the most common mode of transmitting HIV/AIDS is through blood and body fluids, counselling children and youths from home on sexual immorality, abuse of substances that contaminate blood among others must be the thrust of family teachings", Obisesan noted.

Quoting Pastor Enoch Adeboye, Obisesan submitted, "the failure of your children points accusing fingers at your incompetence."

He further stated: "In general, all we have told our children is 'AIDS is real; be careful. AIDS has no cure; be careful.'" They need to know more. They need to know what AIDS does to the blood and why that is important.

"They need to understand risky behaviours, such as reckless sex and the use of alcohol and drugs, and the possible consequences of such behaviours.

"They need to know how to avoid these consequences and where to go for services and help...because every child has a right to the knowledge about how to prevent HIV/AIDS:it could save his or her life", the author enthused.