PANAJI: The Goa government will set-up a centre for excellence in HIV care in December 2019. Health minister Vishwajit Rane made the statement while speaking as chief guest after attending Positive Power Summit 2018 organized by Human Touch, a voluntary organisation on the eve of World AIDS Day on Friday.Listening to various difficulties faced by children suffering from HIV, Rane said that the government will come up with a new policy and grants from the state budget will be provided for various initiatives to create infrastructure so that children afflicted with HIV can live a better quality of life.
“We, as policy-makers, need to change the narrative. We need to be more sensitive on how to take this issue forward,” he added.
Project director, Goa State AIDS Control Society (GSACS), Dr Jose D’Sa said that the main goal is to attain zero HIV infection, zero conversion of HIV to AIDS, zero AIDS-related threats and most importantly, to remove discrimination. GSACS, he said, is trying to achieve this goal by 2020.
Founder, Human Touch, Peter Borges said that during the last two years in Goa, 610 people have been found infected as HIV positive. He further said HIV is not only transmitted by sex but is transmitted by sexism, poverty and homophobia. “If we are going to end the menace of AIDS, we must cure the disease in our heart and minds,” he said.
The organisation also appealed to stakeholders and the state government to take unprecedented and bold actions to advance efforts to end AIDS in the state by 2030. The summit reported on gaps encountered while implementing interventions with adolescents living with HIV.