Aussie funds fight against HIV/AIDS

Aussie funds fight against HIV/AIDS

JAKARTA: The Australian government handed over on Friday a
five-year grant amounting to Rp 153 billion (US$16.9 million) to
the Indonesian government to finance a program to combat
HIV/AIDS.

After receiving the grant from Australian Ambassador Richard
Smith, Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Jusuf Kalla
said the government had already provided Rp 5 billion to cover
the operational cost of the program, which is being run by the
National Commission for HIV/AIDS Control.

Kalla, who chairs the commission, added that the grant money
would first go to Bali, South Sulawesi and East Nusa Tenggara.
Other provinces, including Jakarta, West Java, Irian Jaya, Banten
and Central Java would have their turn the following year.

The national program is designed to highlight the dangers of
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) which attacks the immune
system, exposing the patient to various diseases, a condition
known as Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

The national commission -- which involves the ministries of
health, religious affairs, social affairs and national education
plus the family planning board -- will also use the grant for
providing treatment for HIV/AIDS patients and to finance the
volunteers who provide counselling for people living with
HIV/AIDS and their families.

As of June 2002, the ministry of health recorded 2,198 people
with HIV and another 752 with full blown AIDS nationwide. The
data reveals that 306 people have died of AIDS and that 69.6
percent of the total people with AIDS are aged between 20 and 29
years old. -- Antara