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World HIV/Aids Day: NAS targets pregnant women

World HIV/Aids Day: NAS targets pregnant women

With over twenty partners working in collaboration with the National HIV/AIDS Secretariat (NAS) in fighting the pandemic in Sierra Leone, they have all decided to make pregnant women their priority in this year’s World AIDS Day commemoration. The date is 1st December and the theme for this year is “Help Protect Your Baby. Get Tested for HIV.”

With major sponsors like the United Nations Family and Concern Worldwide; a non governmental organization that donated over Le900 million, this year’s commemoration day will be ushered in by a series of activities.

First is the official launch of the programme that was done by the Second Lady of Sierra Leone, Mrs. Kadijatu Sam-Sumana, and honoured by other high profile personalities. The Second Lady was deliberately chosen to launch the campaign because women, especially pregnant ones, are the target group for this year’s campaign. The campaign was launched on the 24th of November 2009 at the Kissy UMC Eye Hospital, Kissy Freetown.

Other activities that followed were: Muslim and Christian prayer/services held on the 27th Friday and the 29th Sunday of November at a Church and Mosque at Wilberforce in Freetown. The prayer and service were held to pray for both living and dead victims of the disease, and congregational preaching on the nature and preventive measures of the pandemic.

AIDS is real

AIDS is real

Back to the theme which focuses on women, NAS and its partners are aimed at preventing mother to child transmission of the virus, reducing maternal mortality rate, and to also reduce the prevalence of HIV/AIDS among pregnant women. According to the Secretariat, they still continue to notice a standstill in the spread of the virus among pregnant women. A development they are pleased with.

Mr Mohamed Kai Sandi, Information Education and Behavioral Change Officer for NAS, said that in a bid to maintain such success, the HIV/AIDS programme has lined up series of activities targeting pregnant women. He added that they have designated up to ninety sites countywide to provide anti-natal care and other health services to pregnant women. Each district will get five sites whilst the Western Area will get thirty. He went on further to reveal that 6,758 pregnant women will be targeted in the campaign.

Mr. Kai Sandi went on to crave the indulgence of husbands to encourage and accompany their wives to the designated centres in order to ensuring total commitment and support in the great fight of the pandemic. He ended by saying that voluntary HIV/AIDS test will be done on the D Day which is December 1st 2009 at the Victory Park in Freetown.

This information was given to journalists at the Information and Resource Unit of the National HIV/AIDS Secretariat at King Harman Road in Freetown.

By Ishmael S. Dugba -SEM

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