…Health Minister in World AIDS Day message
Minister of Health Dr. Frank Anthony said Guyana remains committed to ending the acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) epidemic by 2030.
Dr. Anthony in his World AIDS Day message, said that to achieve an AIDS free country requires an “unceasing effort and shared responsibility by not just our international and local partners, but also that of the Persons Living HIV/AIDS (PLHIV)”.
He said Guyana has made significant strides in achieving the first 90 of the UNAIDS 2020 “90-90-90” goal (by 2020, 90 percent of all people living with HIV will know their HIV status, 90 percent of all people with diagnosed HIV infection will receive sustained antiretroviral therapy, and 90 percent of all people receiving antiretroviral therapy will have viral suppression).
Towards the end of 2019, Guyana had recorded 8,700 PLHIV, with 73 percent on antiretroviral therapy and 75 percent on virally suppression.
With strategic implementation over the next year, the Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (or PrEP) programme is expected to take pre-emptive action against the spread of the disease and will be available for those who are at risk of HIV infection, the Minister said.
“I assure all Guyanese that HIV/AIDS remains high on our agenda, and this year’s observance of World AIDs Day will see the launch of Guyana’s revised and finalised National Strategic Plan (NSP) for 2021-2025, which sets out our priorities for HIV prevention,” Dr. Anthony disclosed.
Additionally, a virtual discussion on the overarching HIV programme in Guyana is scheduled involving several local non-governmental organisations (NGOs), while there will be one webinar each on Transgender Medicine and Hormonal Therapy, and Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT).
The Health Minister said that the National AIDS Programme Secretariat (NAPS) under the Ministry of Health is mandated to coordinate the national HIV response. Currently, the Secretariat oversees 48 functional fixed voluntary counselling and testing sites and offers treatment at 26 locations across the country.
“Over the years, Guyana’s national HIV response has benefited from technical guidance and partnerships with both governmental and non-governmental agencies, as well as regional and international partners,” he said.
This year’s World AIDS Day observance is themed “Global Solidarity, Shared Responsibility” and Dr. Anthony emphasised that as the theme suggests “we all have a role to play.”
He assured that work will be done to strengthen relations with local NGOs and religious organisations to fight against HIV and improve the country’s HIV/AIDS programme.
“We will also continue to collaborate with our international partners as we seek technical support and best practices to continue providing much needed services to the people of Guyana who are affected with HIV,” Dr. Anthony added.
World AIDS Day has been observed annually on December 1 since 1988 and according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Human Immunodeficiency Virus/ Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS) continues to be a major global public health issue, having claimed almost 33 million lives so far globally. Also, it is estimated that 38 million people around the world were living with HIV at the end of 2019.
“As we observe World AIDS Day, I say thanks to all our staff for the tremendous work they have been doing, especially at the community level to educate, empower and provide health care for our people,” the Minister of Health said.
