Johannesburg - Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa says the creation of the South African National Aids Council (Sanac) was a catalyst in the reduction of the high mortality rate resulting from the HIV/Aids pandemic.
Sanac’s creation in 2000 was a departure from South Africa’s denialism policy, he said on Tuesday.
“Since it was formed, a lot of strides have been made in the fight against HIV/Aids. It has resulted in many successes, particularly in relation to moving away from what we saw as denialism.”
Ramaphosa, who was speaking as Sanac chairman, was addressing the “Champions for an Aids-Free Generation” meeting in Sandton.
The body was launched in 2008 to ensure all children were born without HIV and that all people had access to quality HIV prevention and treatment services. It comprises former African heads of state and the government.
Under former president Thabo Mbeki, South Africa was criticised for its policy of denialism about HIV as the cause of Aids. Instead of providing antiretroviral drugs to Aids patients, the government promoted the use of unproven herbs as remedies to treat Aids.
“There was a denial that this (HIV/Aids pandemic) was a critical challenge, not only facing the people of South Africa, but also the continent. So the setting up of this entity has helped us to move away from that and begin to get to grips with what really needs to be done in the struggle against HIV/Aids,” Ramaphosa said.
He highlighted the government’s achievements in fighting the pandemic since Sanac was formed.
“Many of our people who were infected were dying. Many were offered treatment, and that helped bring down the death (rate). Today we have 2.8 million people on antiretrovirals. It’s the intention of the ruling party that in the next five years, we will ramp this up to 4 million people.”
Since Sanac’s inception, many people had “returned to good health”, said Ramaphosa.
He also attributed the successes to the “massive” HIV testing campaign, in which 20 million people had been tested. He said the government was targeting young people.
“A lot of research was done, and we found that the prevalence among young people was still a problem. That is why we decided we should be engaging young people,” Ramaphosa said.
He also highlighted the dangers of HIV/Aids-related ailments, especially TB.
“Another campaign regards a disease that many people are prone to if they have HIV. The burden of tuberculosis has been increasing, and the focus now is going to be on that too.
“We have started a campaign of testing people in vulnerable areas, particularly in prisons, mining areas and also moving to areas where mineworkers came from originally.”
Weaknesses in the healthcare system and the sexual lifestyle among South Africans were among the difficulties in combating the HIV/Aids scourge, Ramaphosa said.
“Where we have been successful is in the reduction of mother to child (transmission), reducing that to 2.7 million.”
Among the “Champions for an Aids-Free Generation” at the event were Zambia’s Kenneth Kaunda, Botswana’s Festus Mogae, Malawi’s Joyce Banda, Tanzania’s Benjamin Mkapa, Mozambique’s Joachim Chissano and former deputy president Kgalema Motlanthe.
The Star