Building a coordinated national response to HIV/AIDS in Macedonia.
Int Conf AIDS 2004 Jul 11-16; 15:(abstract no. E10069)
Andreeva VA NGO HERA, Skopje, The Former Yugoslav Republic, Macedonia
Although the known prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Macedonia is low, the true epidemiological picture in the country is not clear due to a relatively weak national surveillance system and the lack of specific data for the most vulnerable groups in society. There is a great deal of evidence that conditions in Macedonia are conducive to the spread of HIV/AIDS. Some of the conditions include displacement and migration of people, the country's location on drug trafficking routes, increasing availability of drugs, increasing number of IDUs, and growth of sex work. A serious HIV/AIDS epidemic could have an extremely devastating effect on the country's vulnerable economic position. These past several years, NGOs were the leading force in combating HIV/AIDS, but last year the Government recognised both the existence of factors that could facilitate a rapid growth of the epidemic, and the value of the existing window of opportunity to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS. This was reflected in the active support of establishment and participation of the governmental representatives in the National Multi-sectoral Commission and during the preparation of the Macedonian Global Fund application. As a result of the of the advocacy for strengthened partnership between the government and civil society, NGOs, academia, media and faith based organisations were included in the National Multi-sectoral Commission and the first National Strategy on HIV/AIDS was developed. The National HIV/AIDS Strategy was publicly launched on the WAD, December 1 2003, in presence of the members of the Government, National Multi-sectoral Commission, young people involved in HIV/AIDS related activities, UN TG on HIV/AIDS, local donor community and media.
Keywords: AEGIS, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, HIV Seropositivity, HIV Infections, Prevalence, Federal Government, Organizations, Government, Disease Outbreaks, Public Policy, Counseling, HIV Seroprevalence, Europe, economics
