01 Feb 2015

Government remains committed to the prevention of HIV/AIDS and other Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) through intervention programmes.

Speaking during a health fair in Hunhukwe recently, Hukuntsi West councillor, Mr Dinkimetse Mokwaleng said Prevention of Mother- To- Child Transmission (PMTCT), which aimed to halt the spread of HIV from pregnant mothers to unborn babies had been successful since its inception in Kgalagadi North.

He said the success of PMTCT as one of the intervention strategy would ensure that all new born babies  are HIV free. He also underscored the need of testing for other STIs during pregnancy stage to avoid infecting unborn babies.  He said the 2011 survey of Antenatal Care Sentinel Surveillance revealed that Kgalagadi North was at 11 per cent in syphilis infection.

“It is vital for pregnant mothers to test for STIs and take treatment if infected. Unlike HIV/AIDS, majority of STIs can be treated at early stages and avoid unnecessary death, however syphilis can be drug resistant if not treated for long period” he said.

Concerning other intervention programmes, councillor Mokwaleng said safe male circumcision (SMC) has a notable stride in fighting the scourge of HIV/AIDS. He added that SMC is advantageous because it requires prior HIV/AIDS testing and counselling therefore many men know their  HIV status before circumcision.

However, he cautioned men that SMC is not an absolute prevention measure but it only reduces the chances of being infected by HIV and other STIs by 60 per cent.

He observed that even though government is  combating the pandemic of HIV/AIDS, there are some challenges such as lack of persistent condom use. He said new infection cases prove that  condom use is declining, therefore defeating the government effort of  zero  infections.

Another challenge he said is behaviour change which  he said needs individual commitment. “Should it be every individual’s objective to stop the spread of infection, HIV/AIDS free nation will be possible,” he said. Additionally, he decried patients who continue to drink alcohol while on antiretroviral (ARV) therapy.

For his part, Assistant District AIDS Coordinator for Hukuntsi, Ms Moitshephi Kerobale said the statistics provided by Botswana AIDS Impact Survey indicated that the national prevalence of HIV is 18.5 per cent while Kgalagadi North has incidence rate of 1.38 per cent. She said the figures are worrisome looking at the fact the population of Botswana is small. She noted that ARV therapy is progressive in Kgalagadi North with total of 2172 people on treatment, 781 being males and 1391 females.

Ms Kerobale said STIs are also a worrisome factor in Kgalagadi North as people continue to seek treatment of new infection at health facilities  despite countrywide campaign on STIs. She said in 2014, 1178 people were treated for STIs.  The day was held under the theme “Stay away from sexually transmitted infections to avoid getting HIV”. ENDS