South Pacific countries not allocating enough resources for HIV/AIDS

South Pacific countries, including Papua New Guinea (PNG), are moving towards HIV/AIDS epidemics similar to that in Africa, and their Governments are not “allocating adequate resources” to fight the virus, warned Stuart Watson, Programme Director for UNAIDS Pacific.
A report released in June by the World Health Organization and the Secretariat of the Pacific Community, said an increasing prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and vulnerable sexual behaviour had created a “ripe scenario for the spread of HIV in the Pacific”.
The study, conducted between 2004 and 2005, examined 4,300 people in Fiji, Kiribati, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu.
It finds that nearly one in five pregnant women in the region tested positive for Chlamydia and that condom use in the region is low. Less than 10 per cent of young people reported using condoms consistently in the past year with commercial sex workers, and 12 per cent reported using condoms regularly with casual sex partners, according to the study.
Knowledge about HIV prevention also is low. In the Solomon Islands, 39 per cent of young people reported knowing how HIV is transmitted and how to protect themselves from the virus.
According to Mr. Watson, Papua New Guinea today is where many countries in Africa were five to ten years ago with regard to the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
Most Governments in the region are “sticking their heads in the sand” and avoiding the issues surrounding HIV/AIDS prevention. The only successful initiatives to turn around the epidemic have been programmes that actively and aggressively supported the use of condoms”.
(Source: Kaiser Network, 12 July)