News about AIDS

FDA approves new 20-minute rapid HIV test

7 November 2002, WASHINGTON, DC - Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson today announced the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the first second-generation, 20-minute HIV test. HIV tests currently in use take one to two weeks to yield results. Public health agencies and AIDS service organizations have been eagerly awaiting the new “rapid” tests because they can be used in innovative ways to reduce the number of new infections, which currently stands at 40,000 each year.

The stigma attached to Aids remains one of the most difficult obstacles to fighting the disease, United Nations General Secretary Kofi Annan has said.

Speaking ahead of the UN's 15th annual World Aids Day, Mr Annan warned that the fear of stigma "leads to silence, and when it comes to fighting Aids, silence is death".

This year's day for highlighting Aids awareness comes after latest figures revealed more people are dying from the disease than ever before.

HIV/AIDS and Africa - Back To The Drawing Board

Constituency for Africa (Washington, DC)
ANALYSIS
November 29, 2002
Posted to the web November 29, 2002

By Chinua Akukwe

After 21 years of dealing with the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa, it appears that Africa has now reached the crossroads.

According to the United Nations agency coordinating the pandemic (UNAIDS) nearly 30 million Africans live with HIV/AIDS. More than 21 million Africans are dead of AIDS. At least, four African countries-Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Zimbabwe- have more than 30 percent of its adult population living with HIV/AIDS. Only 30, 000 Africans have access to lifesaving, available antiretroviral medicines. Despite these unfolding ugly scenarios, Africa is yet to mount or lead a credible fight against the number one developmental crisis in the continent.

On a "positive" note, African leaders committed to spending 15 percent of their national budget on health care at the 2001 Abuja summit on HIV/AIDS. Many African countries have "completed" or at the "advanced stages" of completing national strategic plans against the epidemic. Many African leaders now "speak out" against the disease. Many African countries are now "streamlining" their HIV/AIDS remedial efforts in their anti-poverty strategies. African leaders are now fine tuning an ambitious development initiative known as New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). However, for a continent that is losing its most productive citizens on a daily disease and is dealing with a ballooning AIDS orphan problem, these "positives" are clearly not enough. Africa must go back to the drawing board and come up with a comprehensive strategy and operational mechanism to fight this deadly disease.