NEW YORK, United States (Reuters):
Jamaica has been named among an elite group of seven nations which provided treatment, known as antiviral prophylaxis, to more than 40 per cent of HIV-infected pregnant women in 2005, according to a United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) report published yesterday.
The other countries are Argentina, Brazil, Botswana, Russia, Thailand and Ukraine.
The 44-page study, titled 'Children and AIDS: A Stocktaking', found the most successful results in nations that instituted a decentralised approach to service and training, demonstrated a political commitment and incorporated care for the entire family, from prevention to treatment.
But there are still 2.3 million children under 15 living with HIV around the world and only 10 per cent in need of antiretroviral drugs had access to them, UNICEF said.
An estimated one third of infected infants die in their first year, and half die by their second birthday.
Africa at disadvantage
Despite some progress, most pregnant African women do not have access to drugs that would prevent passing on the HIV virus to their infants, the report stated.
The children's agency said one out of 10 pregnant women living in capital cities in sub-Saharan Africa is infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. In Pretoria, South Africa, for example, one in four children is infected.
"Increasing numbers of children living with HIV are now receiving treatment, although the numbers are far too few," the report said. "The increases are a result of improved testing, better skills among health workers, lower drug prices and simpler formulations."
While only nine per cent of HIV-positive pregnant women in low and middle-income countries worldwide received drugs in 2005 that could prevent passing on the disease to children, the figure represented an increase from three per cent in 2003.
In Namibia, access rates to drugs for pregnant women jumped from six to 29 per cent from 2004 to 2005. In Swaziland, it rose to 34 per cent from four per cent, and in South Africa, the increase was to 30 per cent, an eight percentage point rise.
