Open for all: City’s AIDS control facility benefits Afghan nationals

Over 150 registered even though Afghan govt started its own programme

PESHAWAR: The HIV/AIDS control programme in Peshawar has not only benefitted locals. People from across the border in Afghanistan have also been registering for treatment in the provincial metropolis.

At least 150 Afghan nationals were registered for the programme even though the Afghan government has started its own programme to control the spread of HIV/AIDS.

Officials associated with the programme told The Express Tribune the number of Afghan patients registered with the Family Care Center (FCC) in Peshawar would have increased. However, the Afghan government has started its own programme and, so far, around 150 patients have been provided medical assistance at the facility.

“There are female patients but we don’t know whether they are refugees or not and visit Pakistan only for medical assistance against HIV/AIDs,” a senior health official who had been part of the AIDs control programme told The Express Tribune.

The official, who requested anonymity since he was no longer part of the programme, said Afghan nationals were registered for treatment since the programme was launched in 2007. He added the number was still the same since new patients were receiving medical assistance against HIV/AIDs in Afghanistan.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, FCC Incharge Dr Fawad said the number of patients registered with the programme was around 2,400. They hailed from various places of the province while at least 150 of them were Afghan nationals. Now, he said, fresh cases were registered in Afghanistan.

“We have at least 20 people who are transgender registered with the programme but this is only at the centre established in the provincial capital,” Fawad said.” 23% of the total HIV/AIDs patients were female.

Issue of funds

Although the number of HIV/AIDs patients has been increasing with each passing day, the AIDs control programme in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa had been abandoned.

The programme was being run only at a centre in Hayatabad. It is being run on its own since the flow of aid had stopped from Global Fund, an international financing organisation that had been providing financial.

A PC-1 was meant to be approved in 2014, but that has yet to be initiated by the provincial government.

However, besides issuance of funds for other health programmes, the budget document for fiscal year 2016-17 showed funds were set aside for vaccines for protection against different diseases and for schemes introduced for treatment of hepatitis, thalassemia and HIV/AIDs.

The website of National AIDS Control Programme showed the programme was being run with full support from the federal government to the centres established across the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 4^th, 2016.