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(Date Posted:13/05/2008 07:46:43)
The Prime Minister, Dr. Navinchandra Ramgoolam, made an appeal to the United Nations to continue supporting Mauritius in its fight against HIV and AIDS. This appeal was made yesterday in Port Louis during a meeting with a delegation of a joint United Nations Team headed by Mr. Mark Sterling, UNAIDS Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa who is currently in a 2-day visit in Mauritius. The aim of this visit is to discuss with the national authorities on how best the UN system can work with Mauritius to reach the Millennium Development goal 6, which is, amongst others, to halt and reverse the spread of HIV and AIDS. A recent United Nations Programme for HIV and AIDS, evaluation workshop in September 2007, revealed a sharp HIV prevalence increase in the population aged between 15 years to 49 years, reaching 1.8% as compared to 0.4% calculated from notified cases in the overall population. It has been noted that in Mauritius the prevalence is higher among intravenous drug users with significant interaction with commercial sex workers and man having sex with man. Knowing the intimate link between the risk taking behaviours of the most exposed section population and the potentially rapid extension within the population in general, Mauritius faces an emergency situation in the region. Several meetings are scheduled with all line Ministries involved in the fight against HIV and AIDS, major stakeholders from the civil society and the private sector. The objectives of these meetings are to take stock of the national achievements and efforts on one hand and of the gaps and bottlenecks on the other hand so that adequate and appropriate support could be determined, developed and reinforced. The UN team will, amongst others, visit the NGO PILS, the National Day Care Centre for the Immuno-suppressed at the Dr Bouloux Area Health Centre, the National Methadone Substitution Therapy Centre and the prisons in Beau Bassin.
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