Latest News:
Swaziland Launches New National eMTCT Plan
March 26, 2013
This article was first published on emtct-iatt.org
By Joanna DuFour
On March 22, 2013 in a final push towards achieving Global Plan goals, Swaziland launched a national strategic framework for the Elimination of New HIV Infections among Children by 2015 and Keeping Their Mothers Alive. The framework was developed by the Government of Swaziland with support from UNICEF, UNAIDS, WHO, and UNFPA.
The new plan takes focuses on both prevention efforts and behavior change. It prioritizes interventions that will have the most effect on reducing PMTCT, including expanding access to PMTCT services at antenatal care facilities and integrating PMTCT services with maternal, newborn and child health care. The plan also focuses on engaging communities, families, and partners in prevention and support, and strengthening health systems.
Rejoice Nkambule, Deputy Director of Health Services at the Swaziland Ministry of Health, said the new framework aims to “provide a unified platform upon which to strengthen and accelerate efforts to virtually eliminate HIV infections among infants and children, and to keep their mothers alive.”
With the highest HIV prevalence in the world, Swaziland has made great progress over the past few years towards eliminating new HIV infections. The country’s initial PMTCT program was launched in 2003 and has provided for a significant increase in the number of HIV-positive women receiving ART. The new EMTCT plan aims to reduce mother to child transmission of HIV to 2 percent by 2015.
Swaziland EMTCT National Strategic Framework
New Country Plans uploaded
March 22, 2013
New Global Plan Country Plans for Angola, Malawi, Namibia, Swaziland and Tanzania have recently been uploaded on our site. Click the links to access the country pages.
Project to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission launched
March 14, 2013
This article was first published on www.monitor.co.ug
Kampala
A new campaign to reduce the number of mother –to-child HIV transmissions, as well as boosting the survival chances of infected mothers, was yesterday launched in Kampala.
Dubbed, “Optimising access to simplified HIV treatment to reduce new infections among women in Uganda”, the project targets mothers in 19 districts in south-western Uganda, Karamoja and eastern Uganda which are said to have a higher prevalence rate of HIV but with less interventions.
According to the national HIV/Aids indicator survey 2012, at least 16,000 babies were born with HIV in 2011 alone.
Speaking at the launch of the project in Kampala on Monday, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) country representative, Dr Sharad Sapra, said: “There is no reason why 16,000 babies should be born with HIV when we know how it happens and how to prevent it.” “We only need to implement the scientifically-proven interventions like option B+ to prevent further infections of babies by treating mothers early with ARTS,” Dr Sapra added.
The Shs5 billion two-year project will support the on-going national Option B+ roll-out that seeks to eliminate the transmissions. Dr Godfrey Esiru, the national PMTCT coordinator in the Ministry of Health, said: “The ministry will launch this strategy in south-western Uganda next month. We will then spread the roll out to Karamoja and we hope to have covered the entire country by June this year,” Dr Esiru said.
A World AIDS Day in the Democratic Republic of Congo
December 6, 2012
This article was first published on pedaids.org
Every December, World AIDS Day provides an important moment to pause and reflect on the progress we’ve made during yet another year fighting the AIDS pandemic. This one ends with great optimism about our ability to achieve an AIDS-free generation, and a reminder of what we still need to do to get there. (more…)
Teen Club in Namibia helps children living with HIV transition into adolescence
December 6, 2012
This article was first published on unicef.org
By Judy Matjila
Women are the focus of World AIDS Day this year. From mothers and caregivers to healthcare workers and policy-makers, women are essential to reaching an AIDS-free generation, which is within reach, at long last.
With AIDS still the leading cause of death among women of reproductive age globally and the main cause of child mortality in countries with high HIV prevalence, UNICEF is featuring women whose strength and resilience help face the realities of the disease from fighting stigma to eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV. (more…)
Mentor Mothers at the Forefront of Ending Pediatric AIDS in Kenya
December 5, 2012
This article was first published on m2m.org
mothers2mothers and Kenya’s Ministry of Health just took a big step closer to reaching our shared goal of placing Mentor Mothers at health centers throughout Kenya in order to provide many more HIV-positive pregnant women and new mothers with lifesaving information and support. On Friday, November 16th, the Kenya Minister of Health, Honorable Beth Mugo, officially launched the national eMTCT framework developed to achieve the global goals of eliminating new HIV infections among children by 2015 and keeping their mothers alive. (more…)
In Zimbabwe, village health workers play an essential role in the primary healthcare system and the fight against HIV/AIDS
December 5, 2012
This article was first published on unicef.org
By Mary Lynn Lalonde
ZIMBABWE, 29 November 2012 – In Zimbabwe, you need at least two things to be a village health worker like Viola Chapwanya. One is a bicycle. The other is impossible to buy. (more…)
UNAIDS International Goodwill Ambassador Aishwarya Rai Bachchan supporting pregnant women living with HIV on World AIDS Day
December 4, 2012
On World AIDS Day, UNAIDS International Goodwill Ambassador Aishwarya Rai Bachchan visited local hospital facilities in her hometown of Mumbai, India to learn more about the services provided to HIV positive pregnant women. (more…)
UNAIDS encourages Haiti to eliminate HIV in children
December 4, 2012
The President of Haiti ushered in World AIDS Day 2012 commemorations with a note of hope. “It would be a very beautiful success story if we could pull off an HIV-free generation,” declared President Michel Martelly, in a meeting on 30 November with UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé. (more…)
EGPAF Ambassador Joins UNAIDS-Hosted Global Advocacy Discussion
November 29, 2012
This article was first published on pedaids.org
Yesterday, Foundation Ambassador Florence Ngobeni-Allen joined UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibe and UNAIDS Global Ambassador (and musical superstar) Annie Lennox for a special Google+ Hangout in commemoration of World AIDS Day. (more…)