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The Minister of Health in the Province, Dr ZweIi Mkhize,
Representatives of the various structures dealing with HIV/AIDS in the province,
Traditional healers,
Distinguished guests,
Fellow South Africans,

Thank you for inviting me to share this special occasion with you, as we take the HIV/AIDS campaign forward.

I am also glad that this meeting in particular brings together people from a variety of backgrounds and fields, as we launch the Traditional Healers Council of KwaZulu-Natal.

We are pleased to be with you as we strongly believe that we need an all-inclusive cross-sectoral response to the disease as government, medical practitioners, scientists, the private sector and local communities.

We are particularly pleased that traditional healers are part and parcel of our national response to the epidemic. It is true that many of our people, especially the majority of rural communities see traditional healers more regularly than medical doctors. Your own research puts this figure at between 80 and 85 percent. Given this reality, it becomes critical that traditional healers be at the forefront of the battle as we pull out all stops to stem the tide.

Ladies and gentlemen, we must commend the good work already done by the traditional healers and the AIDS Foundation, and the innovation of the KwaDukuza Municipality.

Your working together, as partners in the fight against HIV/AIDS, can serve as an example to other communities forging a local response to the epidemic. This particular kind of partnership will also serve to protect and advance our indigenous knowledge systems.

Ladies and gentlemen, we meet very soon after the release of the findings of the study by the Human Sciences Research Council, commissioned by the Nelson Mandela Foundation and the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. The findings have given cause for hope and given us further encouragement to combat HIV/AIDS through the implementation of our comprehensive programme.

The findings have also confirmed a recent report by the United Nations AIDS Programme (UNAIDS), which highlighted a decrease in HIV-infection among young South Africans. We are delighted as the new information reflects the impact of governments prevention programme, and the efforts of our partners such as yourselves.

The prevention messages regarding condom use, abstinence and faithfulness are being taken to heart, especially by the youth. The United Nations and World Health Organisation Update said that evidence from Ethiopia and South Africa indicated that prevention work was beginning to pay off for young women, with HIV infection rates dropping among teenagers.

The signs are indeed good and we are encouraged when we see that 45% of the respondents in the Human Sciences Research Council survey said they changed their behaviour in the last few years as a result of HIV/AIDS, and that of those, 65% said they now had only one partner; 18% were abstaining, and 34% always used a condom. It means that messages are really getting across and people are changing behaviour as we have been emphasising that they should.

Another indication of change arises when one compares the 2002 HSRC survey with a 1998 Department of Health survey. The proportion of people in the age group 15 to 19 with no sexual partner was 60% in 1998 and is 70% in 2002.

Use of a condom for sex among the same age group was 20% in 1998 and has increased to 49% in 2002. For 20 - 24 year-olds it was 8% in 1998 and 47% in 2002. Levels of awareness and knowledge are high, and once again, all sectors and stakeholders in this battle against HIV/AIDS should be encouraged by these findings as it shows the impact of the prevention campaign.

What is also good news, brothers and sisters, is the finding by the survey that less than 2% of South Africans believed that AIDS could be cured by sex with a virgin, contrary to popular beliefs that this was widespread in the country. It means we need to work very hard to convince the less than two percent that their beliefs are wrong. Traditional healers can play a leading role in this regard, as you meet and treat a number of patients.

While we emphasise prevention given that there is no known cure for HIV/AIDS, we must also reiterate that treatment for people living with HIV/AIDS remains crucial for government. Treatment for various opportunistic infections is available in public health centres.

With regard to the use of anti-retroviral drugs government's position is that such treatment can improve the condition of people living with AIDS if used appropriately and in accordance with international standards, as part of our comprehensive programme combining prevention, care and treatment.

The Government's decisions on this question will be assisted by the Task Team set up to understand the full resource implications of an enhanced response to HlV/AIDS, including health system infrastructure, training of personnel and ensuring patient compliance.

Brothers and sisters, our collective efforts are beginning to bear fruit.

Let us continue to work harder together in this national campaign and priority, as there is a lot of work to be done still. We cannot rest on our laurels; we need to intensify our efforts to ensure that we sustain the high levels of awareness, especially among our young people, and continue to encourage people to change their lifestyles.

I would also like to remind you, as very important stakeholders, to assist us in the campaign of eradicating the stigma attached to HIV/AIDS.

Destroying the stigma will make people freer to come into the open about their status and receive care and support from their families and loved ones.

No one should be left to deal with the pain of this disease on their own.

This year's World AIDS Day theme took this into account, through the message of "Caring Enough to Help". Let us take this message into our heads this festive season and into the new year.

As we celebrate, let us think of all those who are affected and infected, and keep them in our prayers and thoughts. Let us, during this season of giving, share with them whatever we have, be it our time, love or material things.

Ladies and gentlemen, fellow South Africans, I am indeed happy to have had the opportunity to meet you and interact with you today.

I wish you all the best in the work of the Council, and know that it will make an impact in the fight against the disease in the province and indeed the country.

I thank you

Issued by The Presidency, 11 December 2002
Source: SAPA