HIV/AIDS prevalence rates among truck drivers have reduced from 18 to 11 percent on the Northern and Central corridors.

This was revealed by the Secretary General of long distance truck drivers’ association (ACPLRWA) Theodore Murenzi at the closing of a four-day workshop held under the theme "Competence Knowledge Fair” at Sports View Hotel, Remera.

The meeting which was organised by Great Lakes Initiative on AIDS (GLIA) an inter-governmental organisation attracting representatives from all six member countries.
 
"After realising the infection of HIV among us was alarming, we worked around the clock and formed an association and started equipping ourselves,” Murenzi a former trucker driver said yesterday.

The former truck driver said it was a result of numerous trainings from peer educators and massive sensitisation campaigns on behavioural change that numbers started dropping.

"Most truck drivers interacted with commercial sex workers and the communities along this Northern and Central corridors, it was very easy for them to be infected and transmit the pandemic,” Murenzi added.

According to Murenzi, truckers have been carrying out voluntary testing in different border areas in HIV/AIDS centres created by their association.

Leon Paul Riragendanwa who heads Burundian truckers’ association said their HIV/AIDS prevalence is still at 10 per cent.

"Previously the situation was worsening including lots of stigma and ignorance, some used to say it was witchcraft, 150 truckers voluntarily tested and about 100 have so far died since 2005,” Riragendanwa said.

The main objective of the workshop was to assess the transfer of skills or competences of the AIDS Competence Program to local communities where the truck drivers have their stop overs.

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