US donate seven vehicles to boost HIV/AIDS services

The US government, through Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has donated seven vehicles worth sh1.1bn to The AIDS Support Organization (TASO) to support HIV prevention intervention in some districts.

TASO's director of human resources and administration, Cathy Tamale, said they had last got vehicles to facilitate movement in the fields in 2008 and the body has been finding it difficult to access their clients who reside in hard-to-reach communities.

The fleet of seven cars will serve in the districts of Soroti, Wakiso, Masindi, Masaka and greater Kampala, she said.

The executive director of TASO, Dr Michael Etukoit, said their work needed such a boost.

"Currently 75% of the clients we look after live in the communities, so we needed transport to educate and sensitize them on preventive measures and also to provide them with drugs," he said.

TASO Masaka Center manager, Rose Nalubega, receiving the keys for one of the vehicles donated by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Credit: Violet Nabatanzi)

TASO provides HIV/AIDS counselling, medical care, social support, training, HIV education, and research through partnerships, among others.

Currently there are about 100,000 clients accessing services from TASO, of which 7% are children, 70% women while 23% are male.

Every year, the number of clients increases, according to Etukoit.

Meanwhile, TASO has called on the donor community to give more support to clients who are staying on the islands.

"We need boats which will be used to access our clients who are staying at Kasenyi, Masese and Kalangala," added Etukoit.

TASI also provides nutritional supplements to expectant mothers and children who are malnourished.

In the past, TASO would provide food to all its clients but when the contact between TASO and ACDI/VOCA ended, TASO took on the Sustainable Livelihoods Strategy aimed at empowering its clients to engage themselves in Income-generating activities so as to improve their livelihood and nutrition.