Third region most affected by HIV/AIDS in Senegal with a prevalence rate of 1.6%

In the national ranking of the regions of Senegal most infested and affected by HIV/AIDS, Sédhiou is in third position; announcement made yesterday Tuesday, in Sédhiou, by the Technical Director of the National Alliance of Communities for Health (ANCS) after leaving an audience with the regional governor. Massogui Thiandoum cites several risk factors which explain, according to him, this increasing prevalence, in particular the high cross-border mobility linked to the porosity of the borders, reports SudQuotidien.

“The prevalence rate in the Sédhiou region for HIV/AIDS is around 1.6%; while the national average is around 0.3%. And it is the region which is the third most infected by AIDS. But this prevalence rate hides another reality because it is a region which presents a regional prevalence rate given the fact that it is cross-border with many other countries in the West African sub-region. », noted the Technical Director of the ANCS.

And Massogui Thiandoum continues on other aggravating factors: “we also know that many sick people from these countries come to be treated here in Sédhiou. There are also socio-cultural factors as well as poverty which generates vulnerable behaviors among populations. Added to this is the weakness of the service offering and the inaccessibility of certain areas,” he observed.

According to SudQuotidien, this meeting with the regional governor as well as with the implementation partners is a strong plea in the wake of the creation of a synergy of actions to stop the spread of the disease and those so-called opportunists. For Massogui Thiandoum, the Technical Director of the ANCS, “all the advocacy that we made to the governor revolved around these points. And we are very pleased that commitments have been made to address these concerns raised. This helps all stakeholders to work hand in hand and ensure that Senegal’s health policy is beneficial to all citizens and that health indicators are green by 2030,” a- he noted, details the same source.

The deputy governor of Sédhiou in charge of Development, Ba Ousmane Danfakha, reassured of the support of his institution in particular the diligence in the travel of the mobile clinic in isolated areas as well as the coordination with the various services present in the region.