Africa-Press – Cape verde. Cape Verde is investing in abstinence among young people and the elimination of HIV through vertical transmission, aiming for a zero transmission certificate in 2024, the executive secretary of the Coordinating Committee to Combat AIDS (CCS/Sida) told Inforpress.
Celina Ferreira was speaking about World AIDS Day, which is celebrated on December 1st, under the motto “Community leadership to end AIDS”, and said that this action aims to eliminate HIV through vertical transmission in 2024.
According to the person responsible, in this matter existing data indicate the registration of around 80 pregnant women with HIV per year, of which around 50 were always aware of their status and followed treatment.
“Right now we are in the context of eliminating HIV and, in 2024, we will do everything to eliminate vertical transmission, that is, from mother to child. To achieve this, we have challenges for 2030 with preparing the three thousand people living with HIV to take their medicine to achieve an undetectable viral load, working with teenagers and young people”, he highlighted.
To be able to overcome this challenge, Celina Ferreira said that CCS/Sida has been working with a program to promote social skills for life led by the Ministry of Education in partnership with the Ministry of Health and which offers content to transform adolescents into young people healthy by postponing their first sexual intercourse.
In view of this, he revealed that existing data indicate that 45% of young adolescents remain abstinent, not having their first sexual relationship until the age of 19, which is why he considered the situation to be a “win” for the country and an essential protective factor in journey to eliminate HIV.
To overcome this journey, he called on young people to work on lifestyle situations, socioeconomic conditions, societal dynamics, as well as other risks such as alcohol and drug consumption, and to remain “always vigilant”.
“We have been working with young people to continue to be alert, using condoms as a protective factor. But because it is a sexuality problem, we must be vigilant and maintain healthy behavior, aiming for a country with zero HIV transmissions”, she explained, pointing out the habit of taking tests as a form of prevention.
The executive secretary of CCC/Sida also urged young people to take the test, stating that it is free and available in all health structures and organizations such as Verdefam and Morabi.
“People must know their serological status to be able to undergo early treatment, as, when it is undetectable, they do not transmit the disease”, he highlighted.
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