IPPMedia, 12 April 2014

Tanzania Commission for Aids (TACAIDS) has launched new HIV Preventive plan of action dubbed "Three Zeros initiative"...Intended to end mother to child transmission, new infections, AIDS-related deaths, stigma and discrimination among People Living with HIV and AIDS in the society by 2018.

The commission's Advocacy office, Simon Keraryo told journalists in Dar es Salaam that.... Three Zeros initiative was one of the country's top priorities in the fight against HIV prevalence among its population.

He said if all stakeholders could take obligatory efforts and deliberate positively towards prevention of mother to child infection all delivered babies would be safe and free from HIV "this could help the country get rid of the disease," he said.

Keraryo addressed the media practitioners on workshop intended to intensify media involvement in the fight against the scourge, saying it was high time to join forces between private and public sectors in the implementation of health policies.

He said the three zeros initiative was code-named after its major objectives which include prevention of new HIV infectios, mother to child transmission and stigma.

He however clarified that the initiative was part of the government's National Third Multi-Sectoral Strategy Framework (NMSF III) which provided the national roadmap towards the fight against HIV, saying the initiative was now projected to be a four year plan.

According to Keraryo major focused areas include availability of enough antiretroviral drugs to HIV- positive, testing and counseling, sexual education and health care.

Others are men's voluntary circumcision, provision of safe blood, education on prevention of HIV infection through sex, behavior change, as well as support for community care.

The Third National Multi-Sectoral Strategic Framework for Mainland Tanzania 2013/14-17/18 provides a common understanding for all HIV and Aids stakeholders and reflects current normative guidance in the national response efforts.

Development of the NMSF III has incorporated the evaluations of the previous NMSF II (2008-2012) and recent epidemiological analyses of HIV in Tanzania.

The NMSF III recognizes that while the national average adult HIV prevalence rate has declined over the last ten years, HIV transmission rates among key populations, women, and in certain regions are not being adequately controlled.

Further, there has not been a significant decline in overall HIV prevalence over the periods covered by the last two THMIS surveys.

The comprehensive needs of People Living with HIV (PLHIV) are often not being met; stigma and discrimination still prevail; and the coordination of the national response is not resulting in all necessary services being available to those who need them.

It is with this in mind that the NMSF III aims towards the long term goals of elimination of new HIV infections, deaths from HIV, and HIV-associated stigma and discrimination.

Specifically, the NMSF III aims to achieve three over arching results by 2018: one, HIV incidence rate of no more than 0.16 percent (from a baseline of 0.32 per cent in 2012), two, . Significant reduction in Aids-related deaths and the third is reduced HIV related stigma and discrimination among People Living with HIV and AIDS in the society.

However, The National HIV and Aids Health Sector Research and Evaluation Agenda (NHAREA) outlines research and evaluation priorities for the next 5 years (2011–2015).

The Agenda is intended to guide the National Aids Control Programme (NACP); individual researchers; local, regional, and international research institutions; and other stakeholders, including policy and decision makers, to prioritise and harmonise research on HIV/ Aids in Tanzania Agenda seeks to promote research and evaluation to inform HIV/Aids prevention, treatment, and care; support and impact mitigation; and ensure that research findings are used effectively.

Implementation of the Agenda will inform individual researchers and institutions of key priorities and will assist NACP in its coordination mandate of the health sector HIV/AIDS research.

Agenda is also intended to ensure that the research activities that are undertaken contribute to the national response.

Source: IPPMedia