US lauds Malawi for HIV fight
United States of America Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of African Affairs Melanie Higgins has hailed Malawi for the strides it has made in the fight against HIV and Aids.
Addressing the media in Lilongwe yesterday, she observed that Malawi has expanded access to HIV services and reached the global treatment goals.
Higgins made the remarks during a press briefing to mark the commemorations of the World Aids Day on December 1, which also coincides with the 20th anniversary of the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (Pepfar).
She said theUS Government has invested $1 billion (about K1.7 trillion) in HIV and Aids programming through Pepfar, contributing to HIV prevention, diagnosis and treatment.
Higgins further reaffirmed her government’s commitment for continued support.
She said: “More than 900 000 people living with HIV are currently on antiretroviral therapy [ART] and Pepfar supports 98 percent of them.
“Additionally, through Pepfar’s support, more than 570 000 HIV-exposed children are HIV free due to programming to prevent mother to child transmissions; and over 23 000 adolescents aged 10-19 have been equipped with knowledge and skills to reduce their risk of contracting HIV.”
In his remarks, US Ambassador David Young observed that Malawi is on the verge of achieving the United Nations Aids (UNAids) 95:95:95 targets which stipulate that 95 percent of all people living with HIV know their status, 95 percent of those that know their HIV-positive status should be put on the life-prolonging ART and that 95 percent of those on ARTs should achieve viral suppression.
He said Malawi has reduced its HIV prevalence by half to less than eight percent and is now seeing nearly a third of the number of new infections and half the number of deaths it saw a decade ago.
Minister of Health Khumbize Kandodo Chiponda said the rate of new infections is still rising in the country, especially among the youth.
She said: “The ministry is looking for ways of addressing this, considering that the youth are the country’s hope for the effective implementation of the Malawi Vision 2063.”
During the event, Lusungu Harawa, a young woman living with HIV, hailed the support she gets from her health facility where she also accesses HIV services.
“My life began to change when I joined a teen club from my local clinic where I receive great support ranging from regular medical checkups, ART treatment and counselling.
“One of my strongholds to living positively is to know that you’re not alone and the teen club is providing me with that,” she said.
Malawi has made the strides despite the country still facing the task of reaching about one percent of people that are unaware of their HIV status, with estimates showing that 94 percent of people living with HIV know their status against the 95 percent 2030 target.
