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HIV / AIDS News
Article Date: 20 Sep 2006 - 4:00am (PDT)
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USAID
on Thursday through the
President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief
issued a $15 million three-year grant to the
Inter-Religious Council of Uganda -- a coalition of
five religious groups that promote faith-based
strategies to fight the HIV/AIDS epidemic,
AFP/Today Online reports. The grant
will enable IRCU to widen HIV/AIDS services to local
communities through faith-based health units,
nongovernmental organizations, churches and mosques,
according to the U.S. embassy in Kampala, Uganda.
According to Alyson Grunder, an embassy
spokesperson, the health units associated with IRCU
provide 40% of health care services in the country
and will provide the program's clinical components.
IRCU also will mobilize and train volunteers to
provide care, support, antiretroviral therapy and
referrals for specialized care for HIV-positive
people. According to the IRCU grant proposal, the
coalition also plans to use the money for "promoting
delayed initiation of sex among adolescent youth
(and) increasing mutual fidelity among couples."
IRCU, which was created five years ago, includes the
Anglican Church of Uganda, the Catholic Church in
Uganda, the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council, the
Uganda Orthodox Church and the Seventh Day Adventist
Church (
AFP/Today Online, 9/14).
Antiretroviral Drugs Expire in Uganda
Antiretroviral drugs in Uganda worth up to $500,000
recently have expired in government medical shops,
Plus News reports. According to
David Bogonza, general manager of Uganda National
Medical Stores, by the time the antiretrovirals --
which have a shelf life of 18 to 24 months -- were
stocked, some that were meant to be available for
two months had expired. Bogonza added that the
problem was exacerbated by an "unprecedented"
increase in treatment sites, as Uganda expanded its
antiretroviral treatment program from 26 sites in
2004 to 210 sites currently. "For drugs to expire in
stores when we have only 80,000 HIV-positive
Ugandans enrolled on [antiretrovirals] is
inexcusable. It shows that the health ministry is
incompetent to manage HIV," Beatrice Were of
ActionAid International said, adding, "Once
treatment is interrupted, we will have problems like
resistance, for example, to tuberculosis treatment,
and this can be grave for people living with
HIV/AIDS." New stocks of antiretrovirals are
available at accredited centers, and officials have
said the shortage has been rectified, Plus
News reports. Sam Zaramba, director-general
of health services, said the situation was under
investigation and that "[a]ppropriate action" would
be taken against people who did not follow the
correct drug distribution protocol (Plus News,
9/14).
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