Different resources needed to help HIV/AIDS children

Addressing the April 23 event, Chairwoman of the Association for Protection of Child Rights (APCR) Tran Thi Thanh Thanh, said ideas have been outlined to realise the national plan of action for HIV/AIDS-affected children during the period.

According to the official, her association aims to help children benefit from fundamental rights with a focus on disadvantaged children.

The association has taken an active role in taking care of children affected by the disease through communication activities and resource mobilisation, she said.

The association also organised training courses for journalists to help them improve their knowledge, skills and ethics when communicating with HIV-affected children.

Vu Kim Hoa, deputy head of the Child Care and Protection Department under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, said the ministry coordinated with the Ministries of Education and Training and Health and municipal and provincial People’s Committees to set up a board to carry out the national action plan.

A range of related legal documents have been issued, she said, adding that joint efforts have been made to build an environment where HIV/AIDS-affected children suffer from no discrimination.

Services to protect, care and provide treatment for the children have also been launched, Hoa said.

However, the workshop heard, their endeavours have been hindered by an array of difficulties such as limited public awareness and capital.

To improve the efficiency of the work, the APCR plans to organise training courses for its members, step up communication activities and integrate the national plan into other projects.

According to Director of the Ministry of Health’s Department of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Nguyen Hoang Long, Vietnam detects around 12,000 new HIV cases and 2,000-3,000 fatalities connected to the virus each year.

As of June 2015, there were 227,114 people living with HIV in Vietnam, 71,115 of which had progressed to AIDS.