April 11, 2005

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Elders, Tribal Leaders Urged To Contribute Towards Fight Against HIV/AIDS

VCT Center Named after Zewdu Getachew Inaugurated in Kombolcha

Office Distributing Clothing, Educational Materials to AIDS-Orphans

Bureau Urges Youth To Strengthen HIV/AIDS Prevention, Control Activities

National HIV, STDs Risk Behaviors Study To Be Conducted

Mother-to-Child Transmission Accounts Up to 20 Percent of HIV Transmission

Pediatricians Attending Training on HIV/AIDS

Bureau to Provide ARVs

Elders, Tribal Leaders Urged To Contribute Towards Fight Against HIV/AIDS

ADDIS ABABA (WIC), April 10, 2004—A renowned tribal leader from Afar State has urged his fellow elders and tribal leaders to intervene in inheritance marriage and other harmful traditional practices that would pave the way for the spread of HIV/AIDS. In an interview he gave to the Sarkel quarterly magazine, published by the Afar HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Office, Kegnazmach Tiahrt Hamdun who has served for 63 years as a tribal leader said tribal leaders should advise their respective people to undergo HIV/AIDS testing prior to marriage. He said the Afar tribal leaders should closely monitor their community, as the pastoralist way of life would expose the Afar people to HIV/AIDS due to low level of education and awareness on HIV/AIDS. The tribal leader also underscored the importance of continued awareness raising education on HIV/AIDS and harmful traditional practices to tribal leaders and elders to help them forge coordinated effort to save the young generation from the scourge of HIV/AIDS. He meanwhile urged the pastoralist community to abandon the attitude of keeping a family member patient in hiding on the ground that it would undermine the integrity and pride of the tribe.

Source: The Ethiopian Herald, Sunday 10 April 2005, Page 2

VCT Center Named after Zewdu Getachew Inaugurated in Kombolcha

DESSIE (ENA), April 10, 2005—HIV/AIDS counseling and testing (VCT) center named after the Late Zewdu Getachew, one of the founders of Dawn of Hope Ethiopia Association, began rendering services in Kombolcha town, South Wollo zone of the Amhara State.

Full Story: http://www.ena.gov.et/default.asp?CatId=9&NewsId=168537

Office Distributing Clothing, Educational Materials to AIDS-Orphans

ARBA MINCH (ENA), April 08, 2005—The HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Office in Gamo-Gofa Zone of Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples State says it has begun distributing various clothing and educational materials worth over 900,000 birr to 8,420 AIDS-orphans. Office Head Shigute Tiyite told ENA yesterday that the children are between four and 18 years of age. He said 420 children have so far received the assistance purchased with the fund secured from six NGOs.

Source: The Ethiopian Herald, Friday 8 April 2005, Page 8

Bureau Urges Youth To Strengthen HIV/AIDS Prevention, Control Activities

ADDIS ABABA (WIC), April 06, 2005—The Addis Ababa Health Bureau has called on the youth to further strengthen and extend efforts being exerted in preventing and controlling HIV/AIDS to schools and households. Speaking at the launching ceremony of billboards and educational materials jointly prepared by the Addis Ababa HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Office and Integrated AIDS Prevention and Support Service Organization, Head of the Health Bureau, Dr. Eyob Kamil urged the youth to intensify their all-round-efforts to stem the tide of HIV/AIDS. Dr. Eyob said the current anti HIV/AIDS intervention by the youth would complement the ongoing and integrated efforts deployed by individual and group level in prevention of the AIDS pandemic. Project Coordinator with Integrated AIDS Prevention and Support Service Organization, Aklilu Nega said on the occasion that the billboards and the fliers were prepared in cooperation with the youth drawn from the Addis Ababa University and six secondary school students and others. He said the educational themes, which were selected on the basis of the need of the youth would help in enhancing the awareness on HIV/AIDS. According to the coordinator, 5,000 pocket-books, 20,000 fliers as well as 5,000 posters have been prepared for distribution.

Source: The Ethiopian Herald, Wednesday 6 April 2005, Page 6

National HIV, STDs Risk Behaviors Study To Be Conducted

ADDIS ABABA (ENA), April 05, 2005—The Central Statistical Authority (CSA) has announced the commencement of training for data collectors for an HIV, STDs risk behaviors study. CSA Acting Deputy General Manager Yassin Mossa said at the opening of the training that the study would be instrumental in identifying the specific risk behaviors and attitudes so as to enable a comprehensive plan for measures. The training is aimed at orienting the data collectors on how to identify relevant data leading to the identification of risk behaviors and attitudes that expose people to HIV and STDs, he indicated. The study will be conducted on students between the age of 15 to 19, teachers and health institutions. The national study will include 18,700 students. CSA and the Addis Ababa University jointly organized the ten-day training in which 500 data collectors are taking part.

Source: The Ethiopian Herald, Tuesday 5 April 2005, Page 6

Mother-to-Child Transmission Accounts Up to 20 Percent of HIV Transmission

ADDIS ABABA (ENA), April 05, 2004—Of the various modes of HIV/AIDS transmissions in Ethiopia, up to 20 percent of HIV transmission could occur through mother-to-child transmission, the Ministry of Health said. Speaking at the conclusion of decentralized on-job training on Prevention of Mother-To-Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV, HIV/AIDS and STDs prevention team leader with the ministry, Dr. Afework Kassa said knowledge of mode of transmission of HIV/AIDS is essential to rein in the prevalence of the epidemic. He said an estimated 1.5 million adults and 95,000 children under five years of age are living with HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia. The ministry was the first to respond to the HIV/AIDS epidemic since 1985 and devised several strategies to lead the health sector response, he said. The training of trainers (TOT) on PMTCT provided by the ministry in collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Intra Health and Bethezatha Medical College introduced a new type of human capacity building at site level, he said. The Bethezatha training center in collaboration with Intra Health and the ministry has provided the training for 179 nurses in six consecutive weeks in Oromia, Amhara, Tigray, Afar and Southern Nations Nationalities and Peoples States including Addis Ababa, Bethezatha Health Service General Manager, Dr. Ermias Mulugeta said. He said 26 nurses and health officers who received training earlier offered the current training. Intra Health International Country Director, Cristina Ruden said the HIV/AIDS intervention efforts being exerted by governmental and non-governmental organizations should be supplemented through fund, technical and VCT services. The trainees received certificates from Dr. Afework Kassa at a ceremony held at Semien Hotel.

Source: The Ethiopian Herald, Tuesday 5 April 2005, Page 6

Pediatricians Attending Training on HIV/AIDS

ADDIS ABABA (ENA), April 05, 2005—A training aimed at delivering therapeutic services to children living with HIV/AIDS was launched here yesterday. The five-day training was organized by World Wide Orphan Foundation (WWOF) in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, the Drug Administration and Control Authority and the Ethiopian Pediatricians Association. WWOF Country Representative Dr. Sophia Mengistu said on the occasion that the range of activities carried out so far concerting children living the virus was not at the desired level. Dr. Sophia said activities in this field have largely been focused on adults only. The training is aimed at enabling pediatricians to provide successful therapeutic services to children living with HIV/AIDS. HIV/AIDS prevention and control programme head with the Ministry Dr. Afework Kassa on his part said about half-a-million children in Ethiopia were rendered orphans by AIDS. He said Ethiopia is mobilizing the people on a big scale against the pandemic in addition to the various new directives that have been enforced towards the prevention and control of the pandemic. Considerable progress has been registered in the fields of HIV/AIDS prevention, care and support as well as therapeutic services in Ethiopia lately, he indicated. Some 40 pediatricians drawn from private and public health institutions across the country are in attendance at the training.

Source: The Ethiopian Herald, Tuesday 5 April 2005, Page 7

Bureau to Provide ARVs

BAHIR DAR (WIC), April 05, 2005—The Amhara State Health Bureau said it has been taking practical measures that would enable it to provide Anti-Retroviral Drugs (ARVs) freely in nine hospitals. HIV/AIDS and STD prevention and control team leader with the Bureau, Getaneh Derseh told WIC yesterday that three types of ARV drugs would be dispensed to HIV/AIDS patients in the state beginning next month. He said the drugs would be provided to 1,450 patients at the Bahir Dar Felegehiwot, the Gondar University and Dessie referral hospitals, adding that preparations were underway to supply the drugs to other hospitals. The drugs were obtained from Global Fund, Centre for Diseases Control and the Ministry of Health. He said the drugs would only be given to certified patients with the very poor immunity and those who cant afford to buy them. Getaneh said training on the proper prescription and usage of the drugs has been given to practitioners at hospitals, to health professionals at zonal and woreda levels as well as to members of anti-HIV/AIDS clubs and associations. According to recent health information obtained from a survey conducted on 28 sample sites, some 192,000 people living with the HIV virus in the state need anti-retroviral drugs.

Source: The Ethiopian Herald, Tuesday 5 April 2005, Page 7