AIDS not a big deal in US

WHILE the rest of the world is campaigning on the fighting against HIV/AIDS, in US there is no campaign that focus on such a deadly disease.

Speaking to the Tanzanian journalists at the University of Maine on Friday, Health Communication Professor Claire Sullivan said is not a high risking disease as only few live with.

She said based on laws that govern human rights on the name of privacy it is not ease to raise HIV/AIDS campaign in US.

Professor Sullivan said the culture of saying no has influence a lot towards low HIV/AIDS campaign in a few living with HIV/AIDS people in the world.

According to 2006 statistics, State of Maine has about 1,200 people living with HIV/AIDS out of about 1.3 population, as US in general is expected to have 400,000 people living with HIV/AIDS.

The US estimation is far small comparing with to 22 million people living with HIV/AIDS in Africa, South of Sahara, according to 2007 statistics.

Professor Sullivan revealed that although there is no campaign focusing on HIV/AIDS, a lot of initiatives have been done by the Federal government to spread education on HIV/AIDS.

She said as HIV/AIDS was regarded as gay men disease, schools in US were getting fund to facilitate teaching on HIV/AIDS.

Either she added that students and their partners were influenced to test as part of one love campaign.

Professor Sullivan suggested that although is impossible to run campaign in US, Tanzania journalists should think of the new ways and models of campaign that will create more awareness on HIV/AIDS to the public.

Already Tanzania Commission for AIDS (TACAIDS) in collaboration with other stakeholders including World Bank has inaugurated Mobile Van Cinema Campaign that will much focus on Tanzania Mainland rural areas.

The campaign is introduced to support several previous campaigns including one love campaign.