YAOUNDE, July 10 (Xinhua) -- Cameroon has started a three-test HIV testing algorithm recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).
"This algorithm requires that any new person found to be HIV-positive undergoes three reactive tests consecutively within health facilities and community organizations," Minister of Public Health Manaouda Malachie told a press conference Tuesday in the capital, Yaounde.
The new method is an important step toward eliminating the pandemic by 2030, the minister said.
The new HIV testing algorithm will first be carried out and evaluated in four regions, Center, South, Littoral and West, and then be extended to the entire country, according to the health ministry.
Cameroon is resolute in its fight against HIV/AIDS, with about 500,000 people living with the disease, Manaouda said.
According to the World Bank, Cameroon had a population of over 27.9 million in 2022. ■
