Gambia: 'HIV1 Relatively Low in the Gambia'

The West Coast Region one (WCR1) health director has said that though the prevalence rate of HIV1 which stood at 1.6% in The Gambia is comparatively low, there should be no room for complacency. Alagie saine said the UNAIDS's latest report shows that since the beginning of the AIDs pandemic millions of individuals worldwide have been infected with HIV. By the end of 2012, the report added, more than 33 million were infected and closed to 3 million people have died of AIDS related illnesses. Saine made these remarks on Wednesday while deputizing for the director of health services Dr Adama Demba, at a high level experts meeting on HIV care and treatment in West and Central Africa held at NaNA conference hall. The event was a follow up activity, organised by Hands on Care in collaboration with the National AIDS Control Programme of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.

The forum was aimed at discussing the experts report on HIV care and treatment, with a view to identifying the Gambia's strengths and weaknesses in relation to the attainment of the 15+15 on care and treatment and make recommendations on the way forward. Saine said that the HIV and AIDS crisis is a huge global issue and the AIDS virus is perhaps one of the most talked about and feared tiny organism that has become a major public health problem. "In Sub-Saharan Africa where HIV/AIDS is the leading cause of death, over 22 million people have been infected by the end of 2012," he he revealed. However, in many countries in Africa HIV surveillance are now showing declining infection rates. The regional health director for WCR1 told the participants that the Abuja summit of African Health Ministries in April 2006, the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on AIDS (UNGASS+5) high level meeting in New York in May 2006 and the UNAIDS getting to 3 zeros global agenda (zero new infections, zero AIDS related deaths, zero discrimination) are all geared towards providing universal access to HIV treatment, care and support.

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