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President Emmerson Mnangagwa has said the global fight for HIV/AIDS in during the Covid 29 period requires strengthened multilateralism, solidarity and cooperation.
Addressing during a visual United Nations General Assembly High Level meeting on HIV/AIDS President Mnangagwa said with Zimbabwe having achieved the 2020 target of getting HIV/AIDS under control dubbed the 90 by 90 by 90, President Emmerson Mnangagwa says Zimbabwe has invested in areas of health and social protection under the National Strategic Plan.
“Zimbabwe has finalised its own National Strategic Plan for 2021-2025 which focuses on investment in areas such as health and social protection whilst protecting the gains achieved so far.
I am pleased to highlight that Zimbabwe achieved the 2020 targets of ensuring that 90% of people living with HIV know their status, 90% of those who know their status are on antiretroviral therapy and 90% of those on antiretroviral therapy are virally suppressed.
In addition my country recorded a 44% decline in new infections between 2010 and 2019.” Said the President.
In the face of the deadly Covid-19, President Mnangagwa said the pandemic combined with the HIV/AIDS epidemic calls for a globally strengthened solidarity and cooperation to achieve global targets set for 2030.
“In 2016 we committed to reduce new HIV infections and AIDS related deaths as well as to eliminate HIV stigma and discrimination.
The Secretary General’s report on addressing inequalities and getting back on track to end AIDS by 2030 has exposed glaring inequalities in our world today.
The situation has been worsened by the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The HIV/AIDS epidemic has negatively impacted global economies, livelihoods of communities and individual households alike.
Together with covid-19 the two challenges give us reason to strengthen multilateralism, solidarity and cooperation. In our march towards ending HIV/AIDS by 2030, bold ambitious and achievable global targets must be implemented with the requisite funding,” said President Mnangagwa.
The High Level Meeting is expected to undertake a comprehensive review of the progress on the commitments made in the 2016 Political Declaration towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030, and how the response, in its social, economic and political dimensions, contributes to progress on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the global health goal.
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