The Mozambican government has adopted a new strategy to combat the spread of Aids, now focusing on care as well as prevention, Prime Minister Pascoal Mocumbi said on Friday.
The government hopes to spend $300-million over the next five years on its new ”integrated approach,” he said.
”Prevention and care have to go hand in hand,” Mocumbi said.
The new plan integrates prevention, care, and education on how to live with the disease. It also aims to upgrade skills in the health sector.
An estimated 500 to 700 Mozambicans are infected a day, and authorities were not satisfied with current anti-Aids campaigns, Mocumbi said.
”We have not halted the spread of the disease,” he said.
The rate of HIV infection among adults has risen to nearly 15% from 12% last year. Life expectancy in Mozambique is expected to drop to just under 40 years in 2010 because of HIV.
The government expects support for its plans from international organisations, including former US president Bill Clinton’s foundation.
Clinton was in Mozambique last September and signed an agreement pledging to assist the Mozambican authorities in their battle against HIV/Aids. – Sapa-AP