US volunteers tour, clean HIV care facilities

Dec 05, 2014

A group of over 70 volunteers from the United States have toured HIV-care facilities in Uganda.

By John Agaba

A group of over 70 volunteers from the United States have toured HIV-care facilities in Uganda; Hospice Uganda, Mildmay Uganda and TASO Uganda.


The volunteers, led by US ambassador to Uganda, Scott H. DeLisi, visited and comforted HIV patients in the facilities. This was part of the activities to mark the World AIDS Day.

At Mildmay Uganda, the volunteers got the brushes and painted the HIV-care facility. DeLisi said: “Volunteering is such a big part of the American culture, and if we can, by our gestures, put a smile on someone’s face, give them another shot at life, then we have done something special for this person.”

Uganda joined the rest of the World to commemorate the World AIDS Day on Monday, December 1.

Much as the country has registered some gains, and last year put more 173, 000 people living with the virus on treatment, than the 140, 000 who contracted the virus the same year, and even reduced the number of babies born with the virus to only 8000, high HIV incidences, especially among the most-at-risk populations, pull the county behind.

Uganda is one of the 15 countries that contribute to 75% of new HIV infections in the World. In Africa, the country is the second leading contributor of the new infections, second to South Africa. Nigeria comes in third position.

DeLisi said the American people, “shall remain committed to provision of ARVs, prevention of mother-to-child transmissions, safe male circumcision, and MSM (men who have sex with men), so we can have an HIV and AIDS-free generation.”

The activities which also doubled to mark the International Volunteer Day, celebrated every December 5, is a way of giving back to society by the American people.

Erin Truhler, the information officer at the US Embassy in Kampala, said: “there are over 62 million US volunteers every year who contribute more than 8b hours of service to marginalized people, the sick, and in helping learners with special needs to cope. They are in education, in agriculture, in business.”

Through the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), America contributes $323m of the $344.4m spent on HIV interventions in Uganda annually. America funds over 80% of Uganda’s HIV response.

Sara Allinder, the PEPFAR country coordinator, said, since the program enrolled in Uganda, eleven years back, over 644, 000 Ugandans have been able to access treatment with PEPFAR support.

“We want to focus on the most-at-risk populations: the fisher folks, commercial sex workers, long distance truck drivers and MSM, whose prevalence is higher than the 7.3% national average, to try and bring the epidemic down,” Allinder said.

Dr. Barbara Mukasa, the Mildmay Uganda executive director, commended the volunteers and the American people for the “incredible support” in averting HIV infections in Uganda.

She said the facility has been able to support over 25, 000 children at Mildmay, and over 14,000 others in the districts where they have branches.

“Thank you the American people. Thank you PEPFAR,” Mukasa said. She said there are over 83, 000 people getting ARVs at Mildmay, courtesy of PEPFAR.

 

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