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Newsroom
Foundation Participates in Uganda HIV/AIDS Advocacy Day
10/5/2007
William Salmond addresses the audience at the HIV/AIDS advocacy day. |
Most HIV-positive children get the infection from their mothers, according to statistics cited by Foundation Country Director in Uganda William Salmond at a pediatric HIV/AIDS advocacy day event in Uganda on October 3.
Prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) was front and center at the advocacy day as one of the major challenges facing Uganda in its fight to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS. “Although the Ministry of Health has been advocating for prevention of mother-to-child transmission, many mothers are still passing on the virus to their children,” said Salmond.
Ambassador Browning speaks at the event. |
The event, organized by the AIDS Control Program of the Ministry of Health – Uganda, was attended by many individuals and groups, ranging from high-level diplomats, to HIV-positive children, to doctors and medical workers. United States Ambassador to Uganda Steven Browning spoke to the crowd about another challenge, the importance and need for antiretroviral treatment (ART) for children, saying “It is estimated that there are over 100,000 children living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda; 47,000 children are in need of treatment and only 8,000 of them are on ART.”
With an estimated 25,000 infants born HIV-positive each year in Uganda, Browning pointed to the need for more accredited facilities that can provide comprehensive pediatric care. Currently, only 30 out of 200 health facilities nationwide offer this type of care. Many HIV-positive children die because of the limited number of facilities and the lack of support and treatment their parents can offer.
Annabella, the subject of a recent documentary the Foundation produced with BBC World, also told her story at the event. After losing her father to HIV, Annabella was diagnosed with the virus at age 12; her doctors believe she contracted it through breast-feeding from her mother. But thanks to lifesaving medications, Annabella has hope for a full life, and her HIV-positive mother has since given birth to a baby who is HIV-negative. Annabella also presented a poem on the dangers of HIV and the suffering that people living with HIV go through.
A children's group performs at the advocacy day. |
Despite the challenges in Uganda, those assembled left the advocacy event with a feeling of hope. Various children’s groups presented interpretive dance routines and performed folk songs calling for care and support of children living with HIV/AIDS, and stressing the importance of HIV testing. Children attending the event were given t-shirts with the saying “Every child counts — Save our HIV-infected children!”
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