Majaliwa graces World Aids Day in Dodoma, launches new health plan
What you need to know:
- Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa graced the World AIDS Day in Dodoma where he also launched the fourth Health Sector HIV and AIDS Strategic Plan (HSHSP- IV).
- Mr Majaliwa who said the war against HIV/AISD was huge said HSHSP-IV would help in reviewing the HSHSP III and THIS 2016/17.
Dodoma. The government has launched the fourth Health Sector HIV and AIDS Strategic Plan (HSHSP- IV) that will be implemented between 2018/19-2020/23.
Speaking after launching the HSHSP-IV in Dodoma, Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa expressed the government’s commitment to combating the spread of HIV.
Speaking during the event, Mr Majaliwa said the strategy would be used in reviewing the Health Sector HIV and AIDS Strategic Plan (HSHSP III) implemented between 2013/14 to 2017/18 and findings of the Tanzania HIV Impact Survey (THIS) 2016/17.
He said the strategy would provide various programmes for national response and those implemented through the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
Mr Majaliwa also directed all regions across the country to send him reports describing how they marked this year’s World Aids Day.
"As I said during the launching of ‘Furaha Yangu Campaign’ the findings of the fourth household survey show that only 52.2 per cent of people living with HIV/Aids know their status,” he said.
The Health, Development, Community, Gender, Elderly and Children deputy minister Faustin Ndugulile said the country aimed at testing over 4.6 million people from June to December 2018, but only 245,296 people had been tested as of November, this year.
Dr Ndugulile said ‘Furaha Yangu Campaign’ launched by the premier was aimed at encouraging men to take up voluntary testing.
He said 44 per cent of men have tested throughout the campaign and that over 1.5 million Tanzanians have tested positive.
However, he warned people misleading Tanzanians that they were supposed to secure permits from village and ward executives in order to start antiretroviral treatment.
“They will be dealt with accordingly, once they are caught,” he warned.
Earlier, the director general of the Tanzania Commission for Aids (Tacaids), Dr Leonard Maboko said 262,114 people have undergone HIV tested during ‘Furaha Yangu Campaign’ launched in June 19, this year.
He said the campaign takes place in Mainland Tanzania with Mwanza topping other regions with 132,226 tested people followed by Tabora (55,958) and Njombe (24,125).
