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Date : 20/06/2003
Source: Department of Health
Title: Tshabalala-Msimang: Learning and Sharing Conference


SPEECH BY THE NATIONAL MINISTER OF HEALTH, DR MANTO TSHABALALA-MSIMANG, AT THE LEARNING AND SHARING CONFERENCE, KwaZulu-Natal, 20 June 2003

Executive Director, Ms Debbie Mathew
Aids Foundation Partners
All the organisations and government departments represented here
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen,

I would like to thank the organisers of this conference for the invitation extended to me to address you today.

I stand before you here today representing the Department of Health, a department on whose shoulders rests the enormous responsibility of ensuring that our people live healthy, productive and fulfilling lives.

The HIV and Aids is one major challenge that threatens to undermine the strides we have made in transforming ours into a healthy society. As the Department of Health we understand the gravity and the impact that HIV and AIDS has on our society.

However, as much we appreciate the challenge we face, as the Department, we are conscious of the fact that our response to this challenge should be an integrated and a sustainable one. Seeking short-cut solutions without assessing the long-term outcome of our actions might plunge us, all of us, into deeper trouble than we really are.

But, rest assured ladies and gentleman, we are moving and we are moving swiftly against HIV and AIDS. Indeed, we cannot rest on our laurels while more of our people get infected because of lack of information, while more of our people are stigmatised because they are HIV positive or have Aids, while more of our people are killed by TB and other opportunistic diseases because they have been misled into believing that they cannot be cured.

That is why we have the 5-year HIV, AIDS and STI Strategic Plan for South Africa that we launched in 2000. The Plan is a broad framework document designed to guide our country's response to the challenges of HIV and AIDS.

It highlights four key priority areas for South Africa:
* Prevention
* Treatment, care and support for those who are infected and affected
* Research, monitoring and surveillance in order to understand the evolution of the epidemic
* As well as human rights and legal issues

There is no known cure for HIV and AIDS. Therefore we need to firstly ensure that we do our best to minimise further infection. The provision of free condoms both male and female as well as the provision of information and education through formal and informal channels are some of the key strategies we are engaged in.

Research in the area of vaccine development is ongoing through substantial financial support from government and other private institutions. As government, we will ensure that this research work is done in a safe way and that the rights and health of our people are protected.

Our understanding is that HIV infection does not mean that one has to die tomorrow. There are many efforts that this government is undertaking to ensure we prolong progression from HIV to AIDS.

In line with our Plan we have allocated more resources for key interventions. The HIV/AIDS budget (excluding allocations from provincial equitable shares) is set to increase ten-fold from R342 million in 2001/02 to R3,6 billion in 2005/06. There has been an increased financial support for other key role players such as non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and community-based organisations (CBOs) through a number of departments and other donor agencies.

The Departments of Agriculture, Social Development (our partners in ensuring that our people live healthy, productive and fulfilling lives) have joined hands with us in the fight against poverty. Together, we understand that poverty and disease are inseparable bedfellows.

Indeed, over the last year, we have increased our efforts to address poverty. One such initiative is the Integrated Food Security and Nutrition Programme that made R400 million available to provide relief to needy families, irrespective of HIV status.

We also understand that there is a pressing need to address the major challenges of poverty and nutrition in dealing with many debilitating diseases affecting our people. Especially for those of our people living with HIV, there is an opportunity to slow progression to AIDS thus significantly increasing the number of years of a healthy and productive life. To this end we are finalising a document that will address nutritional interventions to people living with HIV and AIDS, as well as patients with TB.

Building the nutritional status of people is very important as part our broad health promotion strategy aimed at encouraging our people to lead healthy lifestyle and prevent many non-communicable diseases caused by unhealthy eating habits. Boosting the immune system through proper nutrition and supplementation has a drastic impact on quality of life, and ensures that medicines taken to address specific infections have optimal efficacy.

Together with the MECs for Health, we have taken a decision to feed and provide nutritional supplements to people with TB, HIV and AIDS. This will include amongst others TB patients in and outside hospital, people living with HIV and AIDS that have been through our VCT, MTCT and home based care programme and those in hospital.

Particular attention will be paid on children to ensure that they become major beneficiaries of this programme. We are working on the finer details of the programme and implementation will commence within the near future.

While the national government is responsible for broad policy and guidance, it is critical that stakeholders at local level plan jointly to address common problems. It is only through mobilising the resources at all levels of government, business, faith-based organisations, traditional leaders and other stakeholders towards the specific needs of a community that success can be ensured. The national government can set the policy framework, but can never know the skills and resources available in individual communities.

I believe that an integrated response has the potential to curtail the spread of HIV infection and minimise its negative impact of AIDS. There is no country in the world where the public infrastructure alone can mount an adequate response to HIV, AIDS and tuberculosis. It just cannot be done.

We need to mobilize and empower the non-governmental organisations alongside the private sector and public infrastructure.

All of us, from NGOs, CBOs and broader civil society need to mobilise ourselves into a potent force that will, once and for all, obliterate the challenge posed by HIV and AISD. All of us should be volunteers in the fight against HIV and AIDS.

I acknowledge that there is room for improvement in our ability as government to channel funds to hard working organisations on the ground efficiently. This is mainly because of the tight measures we have put in place to ensure proper use of public resources.

We all know that there are people out there who are willing to abuse the desperate situation of our people and defraud government under the pretext that they are providing service to our communities. It is the duty of all us to expose acts of corruption. As activists in this field, you know the organisations that are genuine or not. It is our duty to report those that are corrupt. As a Department, we have fraud prevention line which you can all use to report any cases of fraud and corruption. The number is 0800 20 14 14. Preventing fraud and corruption will increase the amount of resources that reach those in real need.

I hope that this conference also addresses itself to this matter amongst the many important issues you are addressing. We believe, as a Department, that the deliberations at this conference and the resolution taken will be a whetting stone that will sharpen our spears as we tackle this common enemy.

It is only with the concerted effort of every individual here today that we can learn to make a difference in promoting safe sexual behaviour, in promoting social action and in promoting care and support for people who are infected and affected by HIV and AIDS.

I would like to thank the thousands of people in South Africa who are working to address HIV, AIDS, and TB who have not been able to come to this learning and sharing conference. The conference and its outcome will be an achievement for all of us. Out of this conference, you will make it happen and you will make a difference in the lives of millions.

I want to conclude by saying that our Department has been given a difficult mandate, a mandate that would have been difficult to fulfil even if we did not face the challenge of HIV and AIDS. Yet, with the help of all of our people, we are certain that at the end victory will be ours and future generations will look back with pride and say: "We have inherited a healthy society because our forefathers did not shirk their responsibilities".

Thank you one and all.

Source: Department of Health (http://www.doh.gov.za)

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