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Africa Faces Challenges In Fighting HIV/AIDS, Says South Africa Deputy President

Submitted by LEADERSHIP EDITORS on July 23, 2012 - 1:40pm

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Addressing delegates at the ongoing 19th international AIDS conference in Washington DC at the begining of the week, the Deputy President of South Africa, Mr. Kgalema Motlanthe, said that Africa is still facing many challenges in its efforts to fight HIV/AIDS.
 
"This is not the time to reduce our contribution to the fight against HIV and AIDS. We are still faced with many challenges as we move from the emergency phase to a phase of consolidation, scaling up and sustaining our multi-sectoral approach with a strengthened health system."
 
"This roadmap will explore a set of practical African-sourced solutions for enhancing shared responsibility and global responsibility and will focus on three strategic pillars: diversified financing, access to medicines; and enhanced health governance," he said.
 

He also said that South Africa has made significant strides in the fight against HIV and Aids over the last two decades.

Among the achievements are 1.7 million people being placed on treatment; 20 million people having tested for HIV during the country's long testing campaign; and the decline of mother to child transmission from 8 percent in 2008 to 3.5 percent in 2010 and to 2.7 percent in 2011, the Deputy President said.

These accomplishments drew loud applause from delegates who since the 18th International Conference on Aids in Vienna, Austria, in 2010 have commended South Africa for its change of track in the fight against HIV and AIDS.

At that conference, as was the case at this year's opening, UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidib, lauded South Africa and other African countries for scaling up their efforts in fighting the pandemic.

Motlanthe located South Africa's efforts within the context of the Roadmap on Shared Responsibility and Global Solidarity for Aids, TB and Malaria Response in Africa recently adopted by the African Unions Heads of State.

The Deputy President warned that the successes achieved should not cause South Africa, the continent in general and funders to be complacent. 

The theme of the six-day conference is "Turning the Tide Together" and is the world's largest meeting on HIV and AIDS. It is being attended by an estimated 25 000 people, including people living with HIV, social scientists, clinicians, activists, researchers and journalists. 

Leading scientists will be reporting on the latest Aids research, and together with implementers, community leaders and policymakers, will help to identify next steps in the global response to Aids.

South Africa's Strategic Plan 2012 - 2016 focuses on eliminating HIV as advocated by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and Aids (UNAIDS). The vision for the country is zero new HIV and TB infections to vertical transmission, zero preventable deaths associated with HIV and TB and zero discrimination associated with HIV and TB.