Hoima to Host International Candlelight Memorial Day

Hoima City will host this year’s International Candlelight Memorial Day slated for  May,17 2024. The event will be hosted under the theme “Ending AIDS: Keeping Communities at the Centre”

The State Minister for Kampala, Kabuye kyofatigabye, said Uganda has made progress over years in HIV prevention and control, bringing down HIV prevalence from 18% in the 80’s to 5.1% today. 

Despite the success registered, Kabuye noted that the burden of HIV remains high with HIV prevalence being higher among women at 6.5% than men at 3.6%. 

Amongst older adolescents and young people, prevalence is almost four times higher among females than males.

He noted government’s commitment to a strategic focus is to ensure a healthy population. 

“We will therefore continue supporting all interventions aimed at reducing inequalities especially among Adolescents Girls, Young Women and Boys, through policy formulation and ensuring there is enrollment and completion of education by all. This will not only help in prevention of HIV but also contribute to achievement of our Vision 2040 of becoming “a transformed society from a peasant to a modern prosperous country.” He noted.

Kabuye asked all state and non-state actors to ensure HIV is mainstreamed in all their interventions. 

“I am happy the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development has instructed all Ministries, Department and Local Government to allocate 0.1% to handle HIV interventions. Uganda AIDS Commission should follow up and ensure that the allocated resources are utilized to implement HIV related interventions,” he said.

On his part, Dr Daniel Byamukama, Head HIV Prevention-Uganda Aids Commission, said the HIV prevalence is estimated at 5.1 an improvement from where the country was in 2016 at 6.0.

He noted that there is a sustained decrease in the number of AIDS related death, from 51000 in 2010 to 17000 in 2022 which is 67% in AIDS related deaths.

However, he noted that the number is still high and various interventions are being undertaken across the country to make sure the 2030 target is achieved.