Over 30% of Ugandan men don't want to test for HIV

At least 35 percent of men have not tested for HIV/AIDS and those who have tested positive are not getting treated, the Minister of Health Ruth Acen has revealed.

"We still have a grey area, they are the men. You are the problem. When we look through our statistics very few men have tested for HIV/AIDS and the number of those who have tested very few are on treatment. 65 percent of the women have tested for HIV" Acen revealed.

She made the remarks while presiding over the 10th Year Fundraising Gala of the Alive Medical services (AMS).

Aceng added that men are slowing the HIV/AIDS elimination process in the country.

Recently President Yoweri Museveni referred to those who don't want test and get treatment as mobile transmitters and weapons of mass destruction. The President initiative on HIV/AIDS predicts that the country will have done away with HIV/AIDS by 2030.

Uganda has made strides in the fight against HIV/AIDS in the region.

"We are the second country next to Cuba leading in mother to child transmission elimination. We have managed to reduce HIV/AIDS prevalence from 160,000 to less than 64000 annually," Aceng explained.

The AMS executive director, Dr Pasquine Ogunsanya, noted that HIV makes self-sustainability more difficult and this creates a dangerous cycle, as HIV and poverty become mutually reinforcing and lead deeper into poverty and sickness.

She said her organisation has reached over 500,000 beneficiaries from Kampala and surrounding districts through its comprehensive HIV care, treatment and support.

AMS is a registered charity health clinic that provides high quality comprehensive HIV/AIDS services.

Musician Alicia Keys, the main sponsor of the Keep A Child Alive initiative in the struggle against HIV/AIDs in a televised message to the celebrants urged the stakeholders to continue with the struggle in the fight against HIV/AIDS.