BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – MEMBERS of the public were treated to an inside view of the National HIV/AIDS Secretariat’s operations during an open house at Independence Square yesterday (Dec. 1).
The event drew a sizeable crowd, attracting persons to the displays of HIV/AIDS paraphernalia such as T-shirts, wristbands and condoms. Posters outlining the Secretariat’s various activities and a video depiction of its march last week also captivated the attention of onlookers.
Yesterday marked the 21st anniversary celebration of December 1 as World AIDS Day. In recognition, nations across the world held HIV/AIDS-related events under the 2009 theme of “Universal Access and Human Rights”.
In addition, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon delivered his annual message in which he warned that stigma and discrimination could undermine global efforts to reach universal access to HIV prevention and treatment by next year.
According to local Health Educator Juletta Fyfield, the open house was meant to showcase the work of the HIV/AIDS Secretariat over the years. She gave insight into the “busy agenda” that the organisation planned for the upcoming weeks.
“We’ll have activities all the way into January. We had our “Run for Hope” and our march in November, and now we’re starting December with this Open Day,” she revealed. “There’s going to be a lyric poetry presentation on December 12, an island-wide whistle-stop on December 14 and VCT testing on December 16.”
Noting there was an increase in the number of persons getting tested for HIV, Fyfield called it a “good step” but warned that there would be an associated increase in the number of persons who are diagnosed with the virus.
“I wouldn’t necessarily say that more persons have contracted the disease. We recently had a community VCT testing, and of the 115 persons we sampled less than five of them had HIV. In fact, since the mid-80s, we’ve only had about 300 total cases of HIV in the Federation. It’s just that more persons are coming forward for testing, so there are more opportunities for diagnosis,” she reasoned.
Latin America and the Caribbean is second only to sub-Saharan Africa in regards to the number of HIV infections.
Speaking to BBC Caribbean, Dr. Amalia del Riego, a senior advisor at the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO), expressed concern about the rate of infection.
The regional body will be holding consultations with Caribbean countries early next year.
