Complacency is largely responsible for the slippage in the AIDS response in the Caribbean, according to the
United Nations Secretary General Special Envoy for HIV in the Caribbean, Dr Edward Greene
United Nations Secretary General Special Envoy for HIV in the Caribbean, Dr Edward Greene.
He made this declaration at the 21st International AIDS Conference in Durban, South Africa before more than 18,000 scientists, practitioners and members of civil society.
Dr Greene was referring to the recent 2016 Prevention Gap report issued by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) just before the Conference began on July 18.
The report shows that after years of steady decline, the Caribbean saw a nine per cent rise in new infections between 2010 and 2015 and only Eastern Europe and Central Asia with a rate of 57 per cent had a higher increase.
The Caribbean statistics compared with a two per cent increase in Latin America; three per cent in Asia and the Pacific; and four per cent in the Middle East, North Africa, Eastern and Southern Africa for the same period. In Western and Central Europe, North America and Western and Central Africa there have been marginal declines in new infections.
Elaborating on the situation for the Caribbean, Dr Greene said that it was necessary for a thorough analysis of the causes and direction of the prevention gap.
Based on his close monitoring of developments in the Region, he identified the possible causes as inadequate attention to testing and treatment, including late testing of people with HIV; lack of care centres, and decrease in the rates of retention of infected people in care.
These, he said, were compounded by equity in access to care especially for the vulnerable populations including men who have sex with men, sex workers, transgender people, those who inject drugs and prisoners.
Only recently Guyana’s Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr Shamdeo Persaud stated that HIV/AIDS cases in Guyana are once again on the rise.
In fact, he said there is need to re-examine the National HIV/AIDS campaign given that there is a developing trend where persons are no longer scared of contracting the disease because of their awareness that treatment is available and so have become complacent in their sexual activities.
According to reports, Dr Persaud stated that statistics explain that it is mostly the younger population that has been engaging in unprotected sexual activities.
He disclosed that nearly 60 per cent of youths begin having sex at an early age and most of them have little to no knowledge on how HIV/AIDS is contracted or know how to protect themselves.
That aside, Guyana recently received US$160,000 from the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to begin a Test and START (Start Anti-Retroviral Therapy) programme which will significantly reduce new HIV infections and fast-track treatment.
Some 7700 persons in Guyana were infected with HIV in 2013, National AIDS Programme Secretariat (NAPS) Programme Manager, Dr Shanti Singh had announced.
The figure represents 1.4 per cent of the country’s population in 2013. Additionally, according to the statistical report, 5.5 per cent of the 7700 were commercial sex workers while another 4.8 per cent were men who had sex with men.
