1 December, 2011 – The Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory notes and welcomes yesterday’s comments by Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi.
Mr Motsoaledi was releasing the National Antenatal Sentinel HIV and Syphilis Prevalence Survey 2010 ahead of World Aids Day on December 1, which estimates the HIV prevalence among antenatal women to be 30.2%, slightly up on 29.4% estimate in 2009.
“At the moment we are stable, but we think the war still has to be won,” said the minister.
The Centre would also like to offer support for UNAids executive director Michel Sidibé, who, in his World Aids Day message, said that 2011 “has been a year of achievements, of collective action, of resilience, of courage … millions of lives have been saved.”
But this doesn’t mean we should lower our vigilance.
The Centre encourages people to test and know their HIV status.
We also hope that the current global economic situation does not have a negative impact on local and global Aids funding initiatives. Funding is a vital component of the fight against Aids.
“No amount of money is too small to make a difference,” said Nelson Mandela at the closing ceremony of the 15th International Aids Conference in 2004.
The fight against Aids requires strong, collaborative and ongoing efforts. “We have to act, we have act decisively and above all, we must work together,” said Mr Mandela in his World Aids Day message in 2006.
“Aids is an exceptional disease and requires an equally exceptional response. It requires ongoing leadership at international, national and indeed, at community level.”