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"Slowing and stopping the spread of this global epidemic urgently requires universal access to prevention, treatment and care together. If the world mobilizes in this way to simultaneously and aggressively expand HIV prevention, treatment and care, we could achieve a truly comprehensive approach to AIDS that could contain and reverse the epidemic."
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HIV/AIDS
22.5 million people are currently living with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa, making it the most affected region. Unlike other regions, the majority of people (61%) living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa are women. (UNAIDS 2007)
In general, HIV/AIDS prevalence data in Togo is incomplete but according to UNAIDS roughly 110,000 people in Togo are infected, giving Togo an official average prevalence of approximately 3.2%. UNAIDS estimates that Togo is home to more than 88,000 AIDS orphans and vulnerable children. (UNAIDS 2006)
Limits of the "Prevention-Only/ Abstinence-Only" Campaign
Most HIV/AIDS activities in Togo focus exclusively on prevention campaigns such as education, public awareness, social marketing of condoms, and HIV testing. They rarely support treatment initiatives despite overwhelming public health evidence and UNAIDS recommendations that heavily-linked prevention and treatment programs are necessary to stem the tide of HIV/AIDS. Because of the current prevention-only paradigm in Togo, the 110,000 individuals already living with HIV/AIDS have largely been neglected and abandoned. Individuals in at-risk groups tend not to seek testing because there is little hope for treatment for those who receive a positive result. Despite the widespread availability of care and treatment programs all over the world, many in Togo still consider a positive HIV test to be a death sentence.
The only groups accepting the responsibility for the care and treatment of HIV/AIDS are the various associations of people living with HIV/AIDS scattered throughout the country. In the northern-most regions of Togo, there are only two associations offering some form of support. Without the Community Directed HIV Initiative the thousands of people living with HIV/AIDS in the Kara region would have no place to turn for sufficient care.
To read more about the link between prevention and treatment click here.
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