World Vision UK is calling on the UK Government to provide details of their specific contribution in meeting the international target for access to the Prevention of Mother To Child Transmission (PMTCT) services by 2010, and how this contribution will be measured.
The United Nations made a commitment that 80% of pregnant women with HIV would have access to services to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV by 2010. With less than two years to go to this deadline, two thirds of HIV positive pregnant women remain without access to these crucial services to prevent transmission to their children. In 2007 alone more than 1,000 children every day were newly infected with HIV, and without treatment more than half of these children will not reach their second birthday
World Vision’s HIV and AIDS Policy Officer, Kate Eardley, said –
‘In the UK the transmission of HIV from mothers to their infants has been virtually eliminated, but without the same services around the world, nearly 1,000 babies are born with HIV every day. This is an outrage. We must act now to ensure that all babies can be protected from HIV and that their mothers have access to life-saving treatment. The time has come to reduce, dramatically, the numbers of children who begin their lives infected with HIV. We have extensive experience of how to prevent mother to child transmission, even in the poorest countries, but there is still an inexcusable lack of political will and resources from the international community’
World Vision has been addressing the international AIDS crisis for nearly 20 years and has
relief programmes in more than 60 countries. Last year in Africa alone, more than 842 000 orphans and vulnerable children received community based care with World Vision’s support while 895 000 received HIV-prevention education.
