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Join on Telegram Rabat – On the occasion of the World AIDS Day, Morocco’s Ministry of Health is organizing today a national screening campaign in universities to raise awareness about the importance of sexually transmitted infections.
Under the slogan “End inequalities, End AIDS, End pandemics,” the three-day campaign is set to promote sexual and reproductive health in university campuses, especially during COVID times.
The initiative is part of Morocco’s national strategy for the promotion of young people’s health, which prioritizes the prevention of diseases through spreading awareness, according to a statement from the ministry.
“It also involves the prevention of sexually transmitted infections among students particularly, in addition to the facilitation of early detection and diagnosis,” the ministry added in the same statement.
The campaign includes a program with several activities to raise awareness about the topic of sexual health in university campuses, university medical centers, and youth health facilities across the country.
The ministry also planned a digital campaign which is accessible through its social media pages and various web portals.
Read also: 70% of Women Living with AIDS in Morocco are Infected by their Husbands: Study
Thanks to the health ministry’s efforts in terms of the fight against the AIDS pandemic, the HIV prevalence rate remains low, at around 0.08%, and higher among vulnerable populations.
The estimated number of people living with HIV in Morocco is 22,000, with 17,465 receiving free antiretroviral therapy in 25 referral centers spread out across the country.
The regions of Souss-Massa, Marrakech-Safi, and Casablanca-Settat host 65% of Moroccans living with HIV.
The cities where the disease is most prevalent are Nador, with a prevalence of 13.2%, Casablanca (9%), Tetouan (7.1%), and Marrakech (5.7%), according to 2019 statistics.
In 2018, testing campaigns in Morocco increased HIV-positive people’s knowledge of their HIV status from 52 percent to 63 percent.
The achievements so far in the fight against the autoimmune disease are part of Morocco’s measures aiming to eliminate HIV/AIDS by 2030, in accordance with the country’s sustainable development goals.
