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The Papua Health Office reported
that over 13,000 people in the Indonesian province of Papua are HIV-infected.
More than 150 of the HIV-infected individuals are younger than five years of
age and contracted the virus from their parents. The head of the Papua Health
Office, Josef Rinta, reported that 80 percent of the HIV-infected Papuans are
between the ages of 15 and 40. Rinta attributed “ninety-eight percent” of HIV
infections to unprotected sex and multiple sexual partners.
Health officials face geographic
challenges in promoting HIV awareness campaigns in remote areas of Papua.
Australia and Indonesia have completed four years of a six-year
partnership—Rapidly Expanding Access to Care for HIV (REACH)—to build access to
HIV services and care in Papua and West Papua. The Indonesian government and
the United Nations are also working together to prevent mother-to-child
transmission of HIV in Papua.
The Friends of AIDS Foundation is
dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and
empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV
virus. To learn more about The Friends of AIDS Foundation, please visit: http://www.friendsofaids.org.
TOGETHER WE REMAIN STRONG!
