Government is committed to the fight against HIV/AIDS and is confident that Guyana will win the fight against the epidemic.

Against this backdrop, Minister of Health Dr. Leslie Ramsammy said it must be known that the global efforts to stop HIV have suffered from the attempt to remove responsibility from public health.

He told members of the press today that it is public health challenges that must be confronted with allies coalescing around public health to bring success.

“I think the recognition by many agencies have now demonstrated that we need to have better systems. PEPFAR has recognised this too. But this doesn’t mean that everybody must give Government money and walk away and leave us to do what we want. I am simply saying that Guyana and many other countries have national strategies that have been developed. We should agree to implement this…so we don’t have different people putting in money in the same thing without any control,” Minister Ramsammy said.

The Minister made it clear that government’s position is not attacking any donor agencies.

The Health Minister said Guyana, along with other developing countries, can win the HIV fight if the leadership, in efforts to stop HIV, can come from public health.

“Prevention efforts, traditionally led by and coordinated by the health sector, is being more and more placed in the hands of other groups, with the myopic thinking that these efforts are best controlled by non-public health personnel. Public health has always acknowledged the support it has received from other groups, but stopping HIV ultimately is the responsibility of public health,” Minister Ramsammy explained.

Guyana has implemented a comprehensive HIV programme that has received international recognition which has begun to reverse the spread of the epidemic.

Meanwhile, Minister Ramsammy said Guyana is fully utilising funds provided by the World Bank.

“So far we have been utilising our funds and they (World Bank) have commended us on several occasions. It should be understood that global funds are not released at once, but on a phased basis, and Guyana has completed phase one. Our work plan for phase two has been accepted. This is an indication that Guyana is performing satisfactorily,” Minister Ramsammy said.

Guyana has developed a model treatment and care programme. Persons living with HIV are able to receive state-of-the art treatment at no cost, and also receive other kinds of support. At present, 2,000 Guyanese are on anti-retroviral treatment, and more than 4,000 persons living with the disease are being treated and managed.

In November, 2001, government introduced the ‘Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission’ (PMTCT) programme which sought to establish early detection and treatment of HIV in pregnant mothers.

Government has increased access to antiretroviral (ARV) treatment for those affected, and the sector now has the capacity to produce its own ARV drugs.

This is being offered free of cost at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC.)