By JOSEPH DAWAI
PEOPLE living with HIV/AIDS have tremendously increased throughout the country since the Department of Health stopped its funding.
The National AIDS Council Secretariat (NACS) revealed this during a recently concluded Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS and the Department of health representatives during a two-day workshop on Key Population issues regarding HIV virus attended by Provincial Health Authorities (PHA), Faith Base Organization (FBO) leaders and health managers at Lamana Hotel, Port Moresby.
The purpose of the workshop was to educate and equip all health managers, PHA and FBO leaders with knowledge and skills to enable them to provide health services that support and adequately cater for health care needs of those that are at great risk of having HIV and sexual transmission infections.
There were also interconnected issues discussed like; Gender Based Violence, human rights, stigma and discrimination and Covid-19 effects on the key population and People Living with HIV (PLHIV).
The workshop program has been developed to sensitize and train leaders of healthcare providers and FBOs in Papua New Guinea on the healthcare needs of populations at risk of HIV and STI in PNG. Its emphasis in particular is how to meet those needs in a friendly, non-judgmental, and non-discriminatory way.
NACS acting director Tony Lupiwa in his opening remarks of the special workshop said “when the department withdrew its funding in 2013, we were unable to bring partners like UNAIDS and HIV had increased to nine (9) per cent which is 54, 845 people living with the virus.
Lupiwa said in 2002 “the record was 2.5 per cent and we were able to cut it down to 0.65 per cent in 2013 because we were working as a team with the support of donor partners, development partners like UNAIDS and we were giving funds out to community groups, church group, CSO and other groups.”
“Today with the increase in the number of people infected and living with HIV, it has been recorded that nine (9) people are being diagnosed while three people die every day since 2013,” he said.
He also stated that the government has allocated funds to the provinces and districts “but we are not working together to support the HIV programs”.
The acting director said NACS is now trying to change Act to bring it up to the Parliament for approval to help PLHIV because the changes must be done to support them.
“We are also putting up a big budget plan for the National General Election. Our past records show that during the election period HIV cases are all time high,” Lupiwa said.
According to 2020 HIV/AIDS report, HIV is present in all provinces, but at increased levels in eight ‘high-burden’ provinces, the National Capital District, Enga, Jiwaka, Simbu, Western Highlands, Southern Highlands, Morobe and Madang Provinces.
UNAIDS representative at the workshop Zimmbodilion Mosende and Dr. Peniel Boas from the Department of Health supported the NACS Acting Director saying HIV has increased and needs to be addressed.
The workshop was supported by UNAIDS and World Vision which was attended by participants from Eastern Highlands, Western Highlands, Morobe, Madang, Central and NCD.
