Namibia is determined to bring the mother-to-child HIV transmission rate down to less than two percent by 2028, a health official said Monday.
Ben Nangombe, the Executive Director of the Ministry of Health and Social Services, made the pledge at the opening session of a joint Regional Validation Committee meeting in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, with the aim of validating the country’s remarkable progress in the path to the elimination of mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B virus.
Nangombe highlighted the country’s remarkable progress in combating the transmission of these infections to newborn babies and children, saying the country is on track to be one of the next countries in Africa to be certified for the triple elimination of the three infections.
“Namibia is joining the rest of the world in the unprecedented opportunity to eliminate new HIV, congenital syphilis, and hepatitis B infections among our youngest citizens, ” he said, adding the overall MTCT rate of HIV was 4.14 percent in 2022.
Namibia launched its national roadmap for the elimination of HIV and syphilis in 2020 and established the National Validation Committee with multi-sectoral members to lead the effort.
Source : CGTN
