Museveni, Damanti and Myers commissioning the children’s clinic in Mulago yesterday

By Raymond Baguma

PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni wants all pregnant women in Uganda to test for HIV and, if found positive, access treatment to save the lives of their unborn children.

He said this would prevent the spread of HIV and save hundreds of babies infected by the virus through mother-to-child transmission.

Long before the Government initiated the Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission programme, research had indicated that 70% of the HIV-positive mothers deliver children who are free of the virus.

“Now the battle is to prevent the transmission of the 30%. It is possible to eliminate the chances of the mother transmitting HIV to the unborn child. We can completely clear this,” Museveni said.

He was yesterday commissioning the $2.5m Baylor Children’s Centre of Excellence at Mulago Hospital. The centre, that will provide treatment for children living with HIV/AIDS, was constructed with funding from John Damonti, the President of the American Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation, the US Centre for Disease Control and the US-based Baylor College of Medicine.

Dr. Adeodata Kekitiinwa, the director of Baylor College of Medicine Children’s Foundation, said apart from treatment, the centre will also provide training for medical students as well as research in HIV/AIDS.

Care for the 150,000 children living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda continues to lag behind compared to the care provided for adults.

She said 133 health centres offer HIV treatment for adults, while only 32 centres care for children.

Museveni said when the NRM government came to power in 1986, it was a taboo to discuss HIV/AIDS and by 1990, Uganda’s HIV prevalence was among the highest in the world.

He said the Government’s sensitisation campaign reduced it to 6.4% by 2007.

He, however, noted that the Uganda AIDS Commission was no longer vigorous in its messages to warn the public against HIV/AIDS. He also criticised misleading messages.

“I was in Kabale and found a signpost that urged children to delay sex. But what does ‘delaying sex’ mean to a student? It could mean that instead of having sex at 9:00am, you have sex at 2:00pm. In the early days, it used to be: No to pre-marital sex. We need clear messages.”

He said HIV/AIDS remained a significant cause of ill-health and death in Uganda and that there was limited access to treatment.

Only 10,000 of the 150,000 children infected are getting anti-retroviral treatment, he said. He added that 40% of the children on anti-retroviral treatment are assisted by Baylor, mainly in urban areas. “We must ensure equity to life-saving interventions to cater for children,” Museveni said.

He hailed US President George Bush’s support to fight HIV/AIDS in Uganda and Africa.

He also praised Ugandan medical specialists who choose to serve their country under hardship and for low pay, instead of going abroad for greener pastures.

The President further said the Government would soon increase salaries for science-based professions.