(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Mr. Edwin Carrington yesterday issued a call for the Region to pay even closer attention to HIV/AIDS as it threatened to devastate the Region’s productive sector.
Speaking at a press dialogue at the CARICOM Secretariat Headquarters in Georgetown, Guyana, on World AIDS Day, 1 December, the Secretary-General told the media that “HIV/AIDS is everybody’s business.”
In recalling, the Nassau Declaration a statement adopted by CARICOM Heads of Government in 2000, which said, “The Health of a Nation is the Wealth of a Nation,” Mr. Carrington said the disease represented one of the greatest challenges facing the Region.
Project Manager of the Pan-Caribbean Partnership Against HIV/AIDS (PANCAP), Mr. Carl Brown, related that the Caribbean had recorded some successes in stemming the tide of the disease though it remained a battle. He alluded to the global trend of the infection which showed a decrease of 3.5 million new cases between 2003 and 2004.
Mr. Brown said that the Asian region was recording steady increases in new infections, but he cautioned that some 500,000 person in the Caribbean were living with HIV/AIDS, which was an indication that more needed to be done to contain the spread of the disease.
Touching on the work of PANCAP since its establishment as an initiative by CARICOM Heads of Government, Mr. Brown said several strides had been made by the Partnership. He said these included the formation of policy legislation to tackle stigma and discrimination and a programme for care, treatment and support for HIV+ persons.
He noted too that the Community’s advocacy for the reduction of the cost for anti-retroviral drugs for persons living with HIV/AIDS was a marked success which made it possible for the stark reduction of anti retroviral drugs from US 10,000 to US 144.00 per person.
CARICOM Secretariat Deputy Programme Manager for the Global Fund Project, Dr Morris Edwards stressed that the Region recognised the importance of employing a multi-sectoral response in the fight against HIV/AIDS to do effective battle. In light of this he highlighted the importance of the input of Youth and Faith-based Organisations which had both committed to assisting with the ongoing fight against issues of stigma and discrimination.
Dr. Edwards noted that increased access to care and treatment by HIV+ persons had also accounted for a decrease in new reported cases in some Caribbean countries as was recently reported by UNAIDS.
With the free movement of skilled persons a key component of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), Mr. Carrington noted that there were underlying concerns regarding the spread of HIV/AIDS.
He bemoaned the continuing stigma and discrimination against persons living with HIV/AIDS and deemed it as a major cause for continued silence on the part of infected persons.
The Secretary-General said HIV/AIDS should be an issue that received steady attention apart from the spotlight it received on World AIDS Day, as it impacted significantly on the Region’s economies.
