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Trinidad and Tobago is one of the countries in which the HIV/AIDS epidemic is stable, according to the latest analysis of the global HIV/AIDS epidemic by UNAIDS and the World Health Organization, Health Minister Jerry Narace said yesterday.
In the five-year period leading up to 2005, there was a 48 per cent decrease in reported AIDS cases. For the period 2003-2005, there was a 16 per cent decrease in reported new cases. However, Narace said these figures should not lull people into a false sense of security. He added that the key to reversing the spiraling trend of the HIV/AIDS epidemic is behavioural change.
Narace was speaking at the third annual formation of the Human Ribbon of Promise at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Wrightson Road, Port of Spain, commemoration of World AIDS Day. More than 1,000 participants, including pre-schoolers all decked out in red, braved the hot sun and came out in their numbers to form the symbolic ribbon.
An estimated 20,000 persons are infected with HIV/AIDS in Trinidad and Tobago. This figure represents reported cases only. Earlier this year, the National AIDS Coordinating Committee (NACC) conducted a national household survey on knowledge, attitudes and practices, which revealed that only 36-38 per cent of people in Trinidad and Tobago have actually had a test for HIV/AIDS.
People living with AIDS are estimated at 43.1 million worldwide. Women within the ages of 15-25 account for 40 per cent of these infections. Sixty-five per cent of all new infections are in this age group. In Trinidad and Tobago, the mortality rate for those in the age group is 12.5 per cent and the female to male ratio for HIV infection is 2 to 1.
The UN recently reduced its estimate of the number of people with HIV/Aids, but the figure still stands at 33 million. UN chief Ban Ki-moon said strong leadership was needed if the fight against the disease was to be won. Campaigners have warned that progress in treating and slowing the disease is breeding complacency about the risks.
