Camel Mlik Posted October 17, 2005 http://www.hiiraan.org/2005/oct/somali_news17_3.html Puntland launches AIDS Commission Nairobi, 15 October 2005 (UNAIDS) – Puntland State of Somalia on Saturday launched the Puntland AIDS Commission (PAC) that is tasked with coordinating HIV/AIDS activities in the state. The event was led by acting President of Puntland, Hasan Dahir and attended by members of the UN Country Team, Puntland authorities, religious leaders, civil society organizations including women’s and youth groups and development partners. The PAC, established under the office of the President, is a multisectoral partnership comprising six ministries as well as civil society organizations, religious leaders and significantly, representatives of people living with and affected by HIV/AIDS. Acting President Hasan Dahir said, “Prevention is our most powerful tool to address this epidemic. It remains critical that we continue to prioritise prevention through promoting awareness on life skills and HIV/AIDS education, while also directly addressing behaviour change.†UNDP Country Director Elballa Hagona applauded the acting President’s efforts to embark strongly on prevention whilst infection rates were relatively low, adding that, “The multisectoral nature of the PAC in building partnerships with civil society, the private sector and recognizing the absolute crucial role of the religious leaders, is a proven major ingredient of success in countries that are making an impact on the HIV/AIDS epidemic. We must transform the Islamic principles and teachings into practices especially with regards to value for life and caring for each other especially, infected women.†UNICEF Representative for Somalia, Mr Christian Balslev-Olesen underlined the importance of addressing the needs of the most vulnerable, women and young people, emphasizing that PAC programmes need to be pro-active in seeking solutions and addressing the potential explosiveness of the epidemic to avoid the scenarios in sub-Saharan African countries like Swaziland and Botswana. In outlining that UNICEF had a special accountability as Principle Recipient of the HIV/AIDS component of the Global Fund on AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM), Mr. Balslev-Olesen said these resources would help to build Somali governmental and civil society capacities. As the UNICEF Representative further noted “The first in-country management meeting of the GFATM in Garowe before this launch was indicative of the commitment to ensure Puntland authorities involvement in the management of the funds.†UNAIDS Country Coordinator for Somalia, Mr Leo Kenny also addressed the audience citing the need to immediately build capacities of services providers in order to mount and scale up a continuum of prevention, treatment care and support. He gave assurances that the UN will work with the international community to help the Puntland government and civil society, build strong, transparent and inclusive monitoring and evaluation mechanisms to make resources for HIV/AIDS, work for Somali people. DFID Senior HIV/AIDS Advisor Julian Lambert welcomed the launch of the PAC, stating that Puntland has the opportunity to learn from 20 years of experience elsewhere in how best to respond to the challenge of HIV/AIDS. He further endorsed UNAIDS position about the importance of providing a continuum of care and highlighted the importance of strengthening basic health and education systems, accessible to all, in order to provide HIV and other essential services. Following the completion of the 2004 sentinel sero-prevalence study by WHO and Ministry of Health, Puntland, among specific sub-population groups, the findings showed an overall average prevalence of HIV among antenatal care attendants in Puntland of around 1%, with regional variations of 0.9% in Bossaso, 1.4% in Galkaio and 0.7% in Garowe. Factors that are fueling the epidemic include: a lack of basic health and social services, low school attendance and civic awareness, negative cultural practices which exacerbate the multiple vulnerabilities of women and girls and vulnerability factors related to high mobility. For more information, please contact: Leo Kenny, UNAIDS Country Coordinator for Somalia Phone: +254 20 4183640/2 Email: leo.kenny@undp.org Contact:webmaster@hiiraan.com Copyright © 2004 Hiiraan Online Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
