Africa Union Holds AIDS Day Commemorations in Zimbabwe

<p>Zimbabwe in conjunction with the African Union on Monday hosted World AIDS Day commemorations in the country’s resort town of Victoria Falls with calls for nations to source more funds for tackling the HIV/AIDS epidemic currently afflicting over 35 million people worldwide.</p> <p>Various African countries, including Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and several others, were represented by high-powered delegations at the event, which ran under the theme: <strong>Getting to Zero in Africa: Africa’s Responsibility, Everyone’s Responsibility</strong>.</p> <p>Dr. Mustapha Sidiki Kaloko, Commissioner for Social Affairs at the African Union Commission said delegates highlighted the importance of domestic HIV/AIDS funding, saying Zimbabwe’s well-crafted HIV levy is playing a pivotal role in the fight against the disease.</p> <p>Doctor Kaloko said the country, which generated over 150 million through this national fund in the last seven years, is using the bulk of the money in preventing the spread of HIV.</p> <div class="tag_image tag_audio_plain aa" contenteditable="false" mode="audio|plain|2541691">Interview Dr. Mustapha Sidiki Kaloko<img alt="" src="../../../img/spacer.gif" title="This is just placeholder, it will be replaced on public site." /></div> <p>National AIDS Council spokesperson Tadiwa Pfupa says many African countries have show an interest in the country’s successful National Aids Levy programme which they would like to replicate.</p> <div class="tag_image tag_audio_plain aa" contenteditable="false" mode="audio|plain|2541689">Interview With Tadiwa Pfupa<img alt="" src="../../../img/spacer.gif" title="This is just placeholder, it will be replaced on public site." /></div> <p>HIV/AIDS activist, Sipho Mahlangu, said he is happy that people living with the disease were given a chance to express their views during the meeting.</p> <p>Meanwhile, mayors from around the world met Monday in Paris, France, to sign a declaration to end the AIDS epidemic in their cities. In signing the 2014 Paris declaration, the mayors committed to putting cities on the fast-track to ending the AIDS epidemic through a set of commitments.</p> <p>Those commitments include achieving the United Nations AIDS targets, which will result in 90% of people living with HIV knowing their HIV status, 90% of people who know their HIV-positive status on antiretroviral treatment and 90% of people on treatment with suppressed viral loads, keeping them healthy and reducing the risk of HIV transmission by the year 2030.</p> <div class="tag_image tag_audio_plain aa" contenteditable="false" mode="audio|plain|2541691">Interview Dr. Mustapha Sidiki Kaloko<img alt="" src="../../../img/spacer.gif" title="This is just placeholder, it will be replaced on public site." /></div> <div class="tag_image tag_audio_plain aa" contenteditable="false" mode="audio|plain|2541689">Interview With Tadiwa Pfupa<img alt="" src="../../../img/spacer.gif" title="This is just placeholder, it will be replaced on public site." /></div> <p> </p>