President Alexander Lukashenko and UN Under-Secretary-General and UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibe have met today to discuss issues related to fighting HIV/AIDS. Belarus has achieved significant success in this sphere and can become the world’s first country to curb the epidemic of the dangerous disease.
The Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS was established in 1994. This is the first high-level visit of the kind in the history of Belarus' interaction with UNAIDS. It is the cooperation with the international organization that has helped Belarusian healthcare to reach serious progress in the treatment and prevention of the disease.
President Alexander Lukashenko presented Michel Sidibe with the Francisk Skaryna Medal today for his contribution to the development of healthcare in Belarus.
Due to UNAIDS support, Belarus has received more than 70 million dollars to implement a series of projects in healthcare. The funds went to purchasing medicines, equipping laboratories, and creating a system for HIV/AIDS prevention.
According to international experts, Belarus may become the first country in Eastern Europe and Central Asia to achieve UN targets on reducing new HIV cases and AIDS-related mortality by 2030. In the next three years, Belarus will be part of the UNAIDS governing body.
More than 4,000 HIV infection cases and 2,000 AIDS-related deaths have been prevented in Belarus since 2000. HIV incidence rate among young people has reduced by more than two times. In total, Belarus is home to about 17,000 people with HIV.
UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibe has given an interview to Main Air, which will be aired on Sunday.












