KARACHI, Dec 2: The HIV/AIDS disease, with the tendency of escalating out of control in a very short span of time, makes it a moral duty of all government and non-governmental agencies and the communities to join hands in containing the disease which can have ghastly economic and social consequences for Pakistan in the long run.

This was stated by Dr Ghulam Nabi Kazi, the WHO’s provincial operations officer, while speaking at a seminar, held to mark the World AIDS Day, organized by the Fatmid Foundation.

He cited 231 AIDS and 1,745 HIV cases officially reported in Pakistan as mere tip of the iceberg and noted that there was apparently a tremendous reporting gap. He estimated such cases in the country at between 70,000 and 80,000.

“Pakistan is delicately perched on the border of a highly explosive region where the virus transmission is the fastest,” he observed.

The disease can be contained effectively by creating awareness, involving communities and destigmatizing the disease in an effort to improve case detection. He also stressed on letting the HIV/AIDS patients take their problem easy by focusing on education and caring for the patients in accordance with the World AIDS Day theme ‘Live and let live’.

He observed that AIDS patients deserved care, compassion and human approach and should not be shunned by the society. He also appreciated the provincial government’s efforts in ensuring safety in blood transfusion process.

Dr Qazi pointed out that Sindh was the first province to carry out legislation for transfusion of safe blood and establishment of a provincial authority for the purpose. He noted that a provincial office had been established while blood banks all over Sindh were being upgraded.

He said Pakistan fell in the low-prevalence and high-risk category for AIDS and it was imperative for all the relevant organizations to streamline their surveillance systems and focus on eliminating stigma and discrimination, which were major obstacles to the effective prevention of HIV/AIDS and its cure.

He said that all sorts of risk behaviours for HIV/AIDS were present in Pakistan and the nation could not afford ignoring the facts.

Dr Kazi lauded the role of the national press for its extensive coverage of this public health problem and also appreciated the role played by the WHO Representative in Pakistan, Dr Khalif Bile Mohamud in closely monitoring the situation in the country in association with the government and the UN agencies.—APP