AIDS campaign productive at grassroots level -CNLS

The deputy Executive Secretary of the National Aids Commission (CNLS), Antoine Semukanya, has said the success story in the war against the Aids scourge was attributed largely to information dissemination about the virus in the rural areas. Semukanya revealed this during a one-day workshop held under the theme, ‘know your epidemic and your response,’ held at Prime Holdings yesterday. “People in the rural areas now have vast information about the dangers of this deadly virus and how it is spread. They know why protected sex is needed,” said Semukanya. He said massive sensitisation on the disease has also helped people living with HIV (PLHIV) to live positively. “These people now live happily in the society,” he said. The current Rwanda National Multi-sectoral strategy plan on HIV/AIDS was developed and adopted in 2005. The main objective of the strategy is to reduce HIV transmission and alleviate its impact in the community. In Rwanda HIV prevalence is at 3.0 percent among adults aged 15-49 years (RDHS, 2005). It is estimated that 150,000 people, including adults and children, are living with HIV/AIDS, and an estimated 7,800 people died of AIDS in 2007, going down from 22,000 in 2001. Ends