UNAIDS calls for vigour on Aids in Asia and the Pacific

Colombo, Aug 20 (UNI) Asia and Pacific nations will face a serious challenge in sustaining their response to AIDS unless they become reliant on external donors and commit more national funds and human resources for AIDS programme.

Speaking at the opening session of the 8th International Congress on AIDS , UNAIDS Asia Pacific regional Director Prasada Rao said resources for national AIDS programmes in Asia while increasing, are insufficient for a durable response to AIDS. National Government's budget for AIDS programmes in the region accounts for only 30 per cent of the 1.2 billion dollars of allocated funds for AIDS, With the exception of Tahialnd, international donors fund the balance.

Mr Rao said although prevalence rates remain low across the region, rates of new infections are rising in a number of countries such as Papua New Guinea, Vietnam, Indonesia, Nepal and Bangladesh.

Warning against any complacency, Mr Rao said " We need continued vigilance to ensure that HIV prevention and treatment are reaching people most at risk and most in need".

He said achieving regional targets of Universal Access to HIV prevention treatment and care demands a sharply defined multi-sectored government responses and a revitalised civil society to confront legal and social barriers that hinder access to HIV prevention and treatment services.

While applauding harm reduction policies in Malaysia, China and India, revived prevention efforts in Thailand and other outreach to men who have sex with men in Combodia, Mr Rao stressed that stigma and discriminatory laws still pose serious obstacles in the region and demanded that national policies focus on the ' forgotten faces of the AIDS epidemic".

Mr Rao expressed concern about the rise on political instability and conflict in many Asia Pacific regions which thwarts access to HIV prevention and treatment programmes.

"Apart from the direct toll of human lives, conflict also exacerbates existing problems of poverty and displaces thousands, making them more vulnerable to health and related problems", he said.

In India, the most redcent estimates indicate that approximately 2.5 million people were living with HIV in 2005. According to 2006 surveilance figures, HIV prevalence is showing signs of slight decline among general population but pockets of high HIV prevalence continue to emerge in new areas. The figures also show an increase in HIV infection among several groups at higher risk of HIV infection such as people who inject drugs and men have sex with men.

In Asia, between 2.8 and 9.8 million people were living with HIV in 2006 and between 3 and 6 lakh peopl became newly infected with the virus. Between 1.40 and 6.10 lakh people died from AIDS related illness in 2006, according to UNI