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The National Aids Commission today publicly launched the National Strategic and Operational Plans at the Biltmore Plaza Hotel on the Northern Highway.  According to the Executive Director of the National AIDS Commission Secretariat, Martin Cuellar, the purpose of the strategic plan is to coordinate the National response to HIV for the next five years based on analysis and country profile done over the last ten years.  He told us just how the commission plans to implement these strategies

MARTIN CUELLAR, Executive Director (National AIDS Commission Secretariat)

“Being a multi-sectorial response to HIV in Belize we utilize the input and the collaboration of over twenty three different agencies, government departments, civil society organizations and community based organizations.  So the implementation of the plan will be done at that level.  We like to use the phrase think nationally, act locally and so all our member agencies will be the actual implementers of the plan and the plan then also includes a mechanism to centrally monitor that implementation to make sure it is as coordinated,  efficient and impacted as possible.”

Three priority areas that make up the plan are that of ending new HIV infections by prevention, improving health and well being with treatment care and support and creating an enabling environment through coordination of  the National Response.  Cuellar says that these priorities share the same amount of importance

MARTIN CUELLAR, Executive Director (National AIDS Commission Secretariat)

“I think a good way to look at the three areas is not necessarily in a vertical manner which place one more important than the other but more in a horizontal plane in which we are actually addressing all three of them simultaneously and we have already started addressing them in many ways and so equally important it is for us to continue to reduce the number of new infections but for us to improve the quality and the length of life of people living with HIV and then also for us to continue to improve the environment in which we are doing the work we do so it can happen a little bit more smoothly, a little bit more efficiently and quickly, they are not exclusive.  As our collaboration dictates that the implementation should not be separate or exclusive.”   

Cuellar says that although the records show that there is an overall decline in HIV cases for the last three years, they have special areas to focus on to continue combating the disease

MARTIN CUELLAR, Executive Director (National AIDS Commission Secretariat)

“One of the things that we analyze with this aggregated date is that the pockets within the general population where we might be seeing more HIV infection than others and currently we are engaging in behavior surveillance study, the result which we expect before the end of the year.  For the first time we will have baseline information on the country on the number of sex workers and the incidents of HIV in that community, the estimation of the population of men who have sex with men and the incidents of HIV in that community.  When we have this information we will be able to give a more specific response to the question of where are the other sub-pockets but we do acknowledge in Belize that there are more vulnerable sub-population out of the entire larger population.”

During her remarks National Program Officer for UNAIDS, Melissa Sobers said that almost forty percent of new infections in 2011 were among young people. 

MELISSA SOBERS, National Officer (UNAIDS)

“It is therefore imperative that we find innovative youth led, effective combination prevention approaches for young people in Belize.  We need to collect and compile more specific information with age and sex disaggregated data for HIV among young people in Belize.  It is now critical that we reach ten to fourteen year old, particularly girls, before these manifestations begin to surface.  We need to expand or reach with HIV prevention programs to young people living outside the urban centers, from Progresso to Halacte.  Social and legal barriers that block young people’s access to sexual and reproductive health services must be removed.  Comprehensive sexual education, sexuality education must be provided for young people whether there are in schools, out of schools or unattached.”   

The fact that HIV/AIDS cases are declining does not mean that people should revert to engaging in risky behavior according to Cuellar.  He says that there have been instances in history where the disease declines only to experience an increase later on, so one must not think that the decline comes about on its own accord.  Therefore the relationship between the National AIDS Commission and Government is crucial to continue fighting the disease.  A presentation of the plan was made this morning by the NAC to the office of the prime minister.  Remarks were also shared by Country Representative of USAID and PASCA, Adele Catzim-Sanchez , and President of C-NET Plus, Eric Castellanos.