Today, a new campaign calls on African governments to make viral load tests routinely available to all citizens living with HIV. A month ahead of World AIDS Day 2015, the campaign ‘Be Healthy – Know your viral load’ is coordinated by the International Treatment Preparedness Coalition (ITPC), Aids Rights Alliance for Southern Africa (ARASA) and 11 national partners from across Africa: Botswana, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi, Morocco, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The World Health Organization strongly recommends routine viral load testing, as an essential part of effective HIV treatment. While many countries in the region have adopted the WHO guidelines, the tests are not widely available in 10 out of the 11 countries involved in the campaign.
The start of the campaign is marked by a march in Lusaka, Zambia today. Joining the march will be people living with HIV, treatment advocates and representatives from many of the participating countries. Together they will deliver a letter to the Secretariat of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the Zambian Ministry of Health and Foreign Ambassadors.
Be Healthy campaign press release ITPC ARASA