AfricaPress-Tanzania: THE National Council of People living with HIV and AIDS (NACOPHA) has launched a five-year programme for sensitizing and using right services for HIV/Aids in over 65 district councils in the country.
In an interview with ‘Daily News’ in Dar es salaam this week, the Council’s Chairperson, Ms Leticia Mourice, said that the programme dubbed “Hebu Tuyajenge” focuses on bringing positive results in addressing HIV in the country.
“This programme aims at promoting discussions amongst the Tanzanian community at all levels, to identify areas of prevention and caring for infected groups, especially those at risk as efforts towards curbing the disease,” she said.
According to her, youth and women are at high risk of contracting the disease, as the new infections report indicate that 40 per cent are youth aged between 15 – 25 years.
She said the group needs to be educated more on how to prevent themselves from the disease and those who are already infected to know how they can best live with the disease.
“This programme aims at encouraging testing by 95 per cent of all infected people, and access to ARVs by 95 per cent by year 2030,” Mourice said.
She said that another part which will be addressed through the programme is stigmisation which has also been an obstacle in combating the disease.
MS Mourice said the project will involve clerics who are very close to the community in addressing stigmatisation among the infected people and encouraging mass testing.
NACOPHA chairperson expressed gratitude for USAID’s support and the government for lowering the age for undergoing HIV testing to 15 years from the previous 18.
