“Our country can no longer tolerate children being born and growing up with HIV when tools are found to prevent, detect and effectively treat this infection,” declared President Félix Tshisekedi at a recent government conference in the Southeast Lualaba province when he launched the five-year initiative.
Supported by an initial commitment of $ 18 million in national funds, the presidential initiative to end pediatric AIDS will focus on political leadership, system strength and inclusive health access, especially for children, adolescents and pregnant women.
It also adapts well with DRC’s global obligations under the Sustainable Development Objective 3 (SDG 3) to ensure healthy life and promote well -being for everyone.
Children hang behind
The initiative marks a renewed commitment from DRC to tackle children’s extremely limited access to HIV prevention and treatment services.
While DRC has made remarkable progress in adult HIV response – 91 percent of adults living with HIV now have access to antiretroviral treatment – children continue to hang far behind.
Only 44 percent of children living in HIV in the country are currently receiving life -saving treatment, a number that has remained unchanged for over a decade.
Each year, thousands of Congolesian children are still infected, often due to a lack of screening among pregnant women who deprive the health care system of a crucial opportunity to prevent the transmission of mother of children and save the mother’s live.
“Publication of pediatric aids is a moral imperative, an imperative of social justice and an indicator of dignity,” said Mr. Tshisekedi.
Four core priorities
The presidential initiative is targeted at four core areas:
- Improving early detection and treatment of HIV for childrenYoung and pregnant women
- Prevention of new infections in childrenYoung and mothers
- Guarantees systematic and immediate treatment For those who are diagnosed
- Remove structural barriers hinders young people’s access to healthcare
A breath of fresh air
The UN Joint Program at HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) praised the initiative as an example of the national leadership needed to close critical gaps in Global HIV response.
Susan Kasedde, Unaid’s Director of Director of the DRC, praised the initiative as “a fresh breath” at a time when global development financing is under strain.
“At a time when development financing is experiencing turbulence and risks bringing the systems that support the most vulnerable, President Tshisekedi’s leadership initiative is a beacon of hope,” she said.
According to Unaids, the recent cuts threaten the financing of critical HIV services, with stock of medicine and condoms that feared running dry within months. Key areas such as birth test, pediatric treatment and data monitoring have also been affected.
