Govt aware of need of national leadership to fight HIV/AIDS, says PM
Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has said that the
government is fully cognizant of the utter necessity of national
leadership and ownership to fight a campaign against HIV/AIDS.
In a message issued on the occasion of 20th World AIDS Day, Monday
(December 1), PM Dahal has said that the state needs to develop
leadership from village to center to create social awareness to fight
the disease.
"Likewise, I want to state that it is also necessary to ensure
honourable participation of people infected with the disease in all
sectors of society," he said.
In a separate message issued by Health and Population Minister
Girirajmani Pokharel, he has outlined the government's continued
campaign to fight the disease.
"If we develop our process, policy and action plan on the basis of
human rights, equality and social justice and remain committed to it,
we can attain our Millennium Development Goals in stopping the
HIV/AIDS infection," Pokharel stated.
There are said to be around 70,000 HIV/AIDS patients in Nepal.
In a statement delivered by UN Country Team, it is mentioned that the
HIV epidemic continues to have devastating impact on individuals,
families, societies and nations. "With an estimated 36 million people
living with HIV globally, it continues to be a major development
problem, with the highest incidence among sex workers and their
clients, men who have sex with men and injecting drug users," the
statement says.
This year the slogan of World AIDS Day is "Lead-Empower-Deliver."
"In Nepal, with the joint effort of the government, civil society and
international development partners, good progress have been made in
the last 5-6 years in bringing down HIV prevalence and the rate of new
infections in the groups most at risk. Our focus needs to be sustained
to deliver much-needed services to reduce HIV and AIDS through
coordination, collaboration and collective action," the statement
adds. nepalnews.com sd Dec 01 08
