The tide is turning against the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Guyana, with fewer babies being born with HIV, less new infections and persons with the disease living longer and healthier lives, said Dr Shanti Singh, Programme Manager of the National AIDS Programme Secretariat (NAPS).
She was speaking at the Ministry of Health/NAPS’ annual Appreciation Awards Ceremony.
A release from the Government Information Agency (GINA) said that the ceremony held on December 6 at the Cara Lodge, honoured several individuals and organisations who over the years have dedicated their energies to fighting against HIV/AIDS.
Dr Singh affirmed that Guyana is well poised to declare the elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV.
She reported that there is currently a 12 months survival rate in Guyana for more than 81 per cent of persons living with HIV/AIDS, and AIDS-related deaths have decreased from almost 10 percent in 2002 to less than 4 percent in 2010.
Importantly, the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO) has ranked Guyana as one of the seven countries to achieve universal access to HIV/AIDS treatment with coverage of 93 percent. This places Guyana only two places behind Barbados and Cuba with 95 percent coverage, Dr Singh pointed out.
Chief Medical Officer in the Ministry of Health, Dr Shamdeo Persaud, delivering remarks on behalf of the Minister of Health, stated that the inclusion of HIV/AIDS as a health priority in the Ministry of Health’s Vision 20/20 Strategy demonstrated the importance given to the HIV/AIDS response.
GINA said that World AIDS Day observed globally on December 1, marked 26 years since the first AIDS case was diagnosed in Guyana in 1987. It also marked 21 years since the National AIDS Programme Secretariat was established in 1992. Since its inception, NAPS has worked with its international partners, other sectoral ministries, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the private sector and other key stakeholders to reduce new infections and ensure universal access to treatment and care services for those infected with HIV/AIDS.
The NAPS Appreciation Awards recognised individuals and organisations that served unstintingly over the years, contributing to the successes in the Guyana HIV/AIDS response.
Individuals who received Long Standing Service Awards were Edris George, Programme Management Specialist of USAID; Dereck Springer, Director of PANCAP Coordinating Unit of Caricom; Desiree Edghill, Executive Director Artistes in Direct Support; Sean Wilson, Programme Officer, International Labour Organisation (ILO); and Nazim Hussain, Community Mobilisation Coordinator with the NAPS. Each served in the fight against HIV/AIDS for over a decade, a few over two decades.
Three NGOs were also awarded for making the greatest impact in reaching the key populations of men who have sex with men and female commercial sex workers. There were Artistes in Direct Support (AIDS) of Region 4; United Bricklayers, New Amsterdam Berbice; and Family, Awareness, Consciousness, Togetherness (FACT) of Springlands, Berbice.
