Urges 2-3% GDP allocation to health sector to improve situation. PHOTO: FILE
As 90 per cent of people living with infections belong to up to twelve major cities across Pakistan, the country must develop strong city-based health programmes in order to achieve the 6th Millennium Development Goal, according to J.V.R Prasada Rao, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for AIDS in Asia and the Pacific.
Rao said that at least 2 to 3 per cent of Pakistan’s GDP needed to be allocated to the health sector in order to improve current social indicators; at the moment, 0.9 per cent of Pakistan’s GDP is allocated to the health sector.
In an interview with The Express Tribune, Rao said that as Pakistan is the fourth largest country in the region affected by transmittable diseases, it was of significance for the United Nations from a global perspective.
He said that Indonesia, Philippines and Pakistan were amongst the three countries where the total number of new infections was constantly on the rise.
While expressing commitment and technical support, Rao said that the Global Fund has allocated a total of US$34 million to combat HIV/AIDS in Pakistan. He said that although the HIV count has been stagnant here for the last 34 years, it does not mean the figure has been declining. In 2010, the last time a survey was conducted, a total of 87,000 people identified were affected by infections, which is a conservative figure according to Rao.
Rao said that the UN has expressed its interest in assisting the government to conduct a new round for a case-based survey.
“This is something that needs to be done this year,” he said. “Pakistan is entering a new development syndrome and new initiatives can be gainful.”
Rao and Director UNAIDS Asia and Pacific Steve J Kraus met with Minister of State for National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination Saira Afzal Tarar, Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms Ahsan Iqbal and members of civil society and the judiciary.
He said that Pakistan can move towards the vision of an AIDS-free generation if an effective and appropriate response to HIV is put in place. More students, particularly those entering adulthood must be educated.
To reduce stigma and discrimination in the country, Rao said that engaging religious leaders and learning from Iran and Indonesia, who have engaged scholars for health programmes, could be beneficial. Rao said that an estimated 20,000 to 25,000 women today might be HIV-positive in Pakistan.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 25th, 2014.
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The fact that 90% of identified AIDS cases is in top 12 cities, it simply means that is where the capability of diagnosis and detection lies. It does n mean those are the only places where the disease is prevalent.