EGPAF head, ‘Mama’ Samia chat ways to achieve AIDS-free generation
Dar es Salaam. Tanzania has made significant progress in addressing HIV and maternal and child health in its efforts to prevent mother to child transmission of HIV, says Charles Lyons, President and CEO of the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.
He revealed this in his statement shortly after meeting with President Samia Suluhu Hassan at an event hosted by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars on Friday last week in the United States.
He says that President Hassan discussed the impact the private sector investment has had in improving the health of children and families across Tanzania.
“Across all the three important indicators of HIV testing, ART enrollment, and viral suppression among those in ART, Tanzania has seen a success rate of more than 90 percent among HIV-positive pregnant women,” he notes in a statement seen by The Citizen.
He says the country’s commitment to protecting the health of the mother and the child is also demonstrated in their endorsement of plans to address vertical transmission of other communicable diseases, including hepatitis B virus (HBV) – also known as the triple elimination plan.
“With targets for testing infants exposed to HIV falling far behind the national targets, we can only end AIDS as a public health threat if we provide access to prevention, treatment, and care to all members of the family, at all stages in life,” he exudes.
“EGPAF is deeply grateful for our longtime collaboration with the government of Tanzania – and I know that together we can achieve an AIDS-free generation,” he adds.
Meanwhile, EGPAF is a proven leader in the fight for an AIDS-free generation and has reached over 31 million pregnant women with services to prevent the transmission of HIV to their babies.
Founded in 1988, the organisation has supported over 15,000 sites and currently works in 17 countries to offer HIV counseling, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment services alongside high-quality family health care.
“Each stage of life—from infancy to adulthood—brings new and different challenges, and EGPAF is driven to see a world where no other mother, child, or family is devastated by this disease,” he notes.
