Unity state: Local organizations should be involved in HIV/AIDs awareness
By Bonifacio Taban Kuich
February 26, 2011 (BENTIU) – Voluntary testing in Bentiu town has found 94 HIV positive individuals. The HIV virus causes the often-fatal disease of AIDS and is usually spread through having unprotected sex. Unity state health authorities and local organizations are seeking to raise awareness on HIV and AIDS among the community.
Unity state director on HIV and AIDS, Dr. Wichgoah Piny said that the state and local community groups are meeting to plan how to raise awareness on the deadly sexually-transmitted virus.
Piny added that “we have organized a one day workshop concerning HIV/AIDs awareness, last ten days we received the leading agency from Juba assigned by South Sudan Aids Commission to cover HIVs awareness through supporting local NGO’s and International NGO’s for HIVs awareness in the state and their target is to give assignment for them”.
HIV/AIDS has spread rapidly across Africa in the last couple decades, killing millions of people. Due to South Sudan’s isolation during the South’s war against the Khartoum government has, until pre-2005, not been as affected.
However, now as South Sudan opens up to the outside world, many fear the deadly disease will follow.
Patrick Okoth, who works on HIV and AIDS issues for Health Net, a group which assists the South Sudan government on health policies, says that most South Sudanese do not know anything about the virus. He said that awareness about the danger HIV/AIDs and how it can be prevented.
Okoth said, “today we are here with civil society organizations and community base organizations so that they can help us to find fight HIV/Aids in the communities, the results we got the latest we specialize survey, the awareness was very low and the SSAC alone and Ministry of Health cannot do it, we want to join hands with all these organizations who are in the communities so that we can see how can be improve HIV/Aids awareness in Unity State”.
AIDS is completely preventable disease, and is spread through having sex with someone else infected with the virus. Wearing a condom during sex can prevent the virus from spreading to others. Those infected with HIV will not start getting sick until some years later, meaning many who carry the virus do not even know that they have it.
Local resident of Bentui town, Wang Gai Nyajuol, said that young people need to be aware of the dangers. He said that “the ignorance of our communities are carrying out, is because they need an awareness to be created to them, an aware on certain point that HIV/AIDs, need to be highlighted danger that the disease has no cure worldwide, that thing should be care out through dramas, in Churches, school and health centers and then children will be taught and include in the government institutions”.
The state director for the HIV/AIDs commission said that main strategy now is to have local organizations tell local communities about the HIV and AIDS threat.
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