NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 25 – People living with HIV/Aids are set to benefit from a government plan that intends to provide those infected with more accessible and affordable specialised health services.
The plan, dubbed Kenya National Aids Strategic Plan 2009/2010, will enable the country to achieve its targets for quality integrated services at all levels.
Special Programmes Minister Naomi Shaaban said that the plan intends to mitigate the effect of the HIV scourge in the community.
“Development of the new strategic plan is on course and I am confident that the July deadline will be met,” Mrs Shaaban said. “An HIV/AIDS free society is our vision. The new strategic plan will aim to achieve universal access for quality integrated services.”
She stated that the new policy will pay special attention to prevention of new infections.
“It will also reduce HIV related illnesses,” she said.
The Minister stressed that special attention would be given to the prevention of new HIV infections and securing an AIDS-competent Kenyan society in the long run.
The proposed strategic thrusts and approaches of the new plan will include the provision of cost effective services informed by an engendered rights based approach for universal access to prevention treatment, care and support.
Mrs Shaaban explained that the program would target community based programmes supporting universal access and social transformation for an AIDS-competent society.
National Aids Control Council (NACC) Director Alloys Orago, on his part, emphasised the need for the government to allocate more funds into HIV/AIDS prevention activities.
“The government needs to put in more money into HIV programmes so that we do not depend so much on donor support,” Mr Orago said, while calling on people to visit Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) centres.
“The VCT testing will ensure that 80 percent of Kenyans will have known their status which will be good for planning,” he outlined.
“Those who are positive will be put on treatment and this will reduce the number of orphans which now stands at approximately 2.4 million,” he added.
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