WORLD ASSEMBLY OF YOUTH PRESS RELEASE WORLD AIDS DAY: ‘CLOSING THE GAP IN HIV PREVENTION AND TREATMENT’ DATE: 01 DECEMBER 2014 “HIV infection and AIDS is growing. But so too is public apathy. We have already lost too many friends and colleagues.”~ David Geffen~ AIDS (Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome) is a pandemic disease caused due to the infection of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Despite considerable progress in the fight against the HIV/AIDS, it continues to cause much suffering to people around the World. The HIV/AIDS epidemic is increasingly a problem of youth, especially in parts of the developing world. Governments have noted with grave concern the fact that HIV infections are heavily concentrated among youth and that there is a lack of information available for youth pertaining to the prevention of the HIV/AIDS. World AIDS Day is celebrated every year on 1st of December to raise the public awareness on the HIV/AIDS and its threats. The day is an opportunity for public and private partners to disseminate and share the information about the status of the pandemic as well as the progress in HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care around the world, particularly in high prevalence countries. The theme set by the World Health Organization (WHO) for this year’s World AIDS Day is “Closing the Gap in HIV Prevention and Treatment “aiming to decrease the access gap in terms of prevention, treatment and care so that more people will have equal access to the services they need. Closing the gap on HIV treatment will bring enormous benefits in keeping people alive and reducing new infections. However, closing the treatment gap alone will not be sufficient to end the AIDS epidemic. A parallel increased prevention effort is required. In this year World AIDs Day, we, at World Assembly of Youth (WAY), acknowledge that it is imperative for young people to have access to the adequate information about preventive measures and treatments so that it will enable them to avoid high risk and decrease death rate caused by the pandemic. Our effort in providing the right information about HIV/AIDS is not only the publication of our book pertaining to HIV/AIDS but also our continuous research performed so that the latest information and data are available for young people. In light with that, we have prioritized to play an active role in bringing awareness about and tackling the issue of HIV/AIDS among young people. We aim to reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS among youth especially those infected due to lack of knowledge about the pandemic. To stop the spread of HIV/AIDS, we urge everyone particularly young people to contribute their efforts. By joining our efforts, we will be able to decrease the access gap in terms of prevention, treatment and care of HIV/AIDS. HAPPY WORLD AIDS DAY! -END
Posted on: Mon, 01 Dec 2014 10:21:32 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015