Maputo — The Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), Michel Sidibe, on Thursday advised the Mozambican government to change its treatment regimen for pregnant women carrying the HIV virus.

Currently, HIV positive pregnant women are given the drug "Nevirapine" in an attempt to stop mother to child transmission. However, this is not considered to be the most effective treatment.

Sidibe called for a change in treatment policy shortly after meeting Prime Minister Ali Aires in Maputo.

Sidibe said that the continued use of Nevirapine, despite more effective drugs being available, is one of the reasons why many babies are infected at birth.

Quoted in the daily newspaper "Noticias", he said that "Mozambique is listed as one of 30 countries where a quarter of pregnant women continue to take Nevirapine to prevent mother to child transmission".

According to the paper, he stated that because of the persistence in the use of this drug there are about 40,000 babies born with the HIV virus every year in Mozambique.

Sidibe stressed the importance of a prevention revolution to stop new HIV infections, as well as the need to integrate the AIDS response with health and social development efforts.

He warned that "Mozambique has the second highest rate of new adult HIV infections in the world. There is a need to accelerate prevention programmes".

During the meeting he took the opportunity to address Mozambique's economic performance which in the last decade has been growing at an average rate of 7.5 per cent.

"If we want a stable society it is important to redistribute this growth", said Sidibe, arguing that this wealth could be used to increase the number of people receiving antiretroviral therapy, which in turn would pave the way for citizens to participate in country's development.