KAMPALA, Dec. 1 (Xinhua) -- As Monday marked World AIDS Day, a Chinese construction firm in Uganda held an HIV/AIDS prevention campaign among its staff and local communities.
China Railway Construction Engineering Group Co. Ltd., partnering with the AIDS Support Organization (TASO), a non-governmental organization, held free HIV counseling and testing at the firm's head office here in the capital city, Kampala.
Liu Qiang, general manager of the construction firm, said the event was held to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS prevention among local employees and build a strong health protection barrier. Liu said the company places great importance on the health needs of its employees.
During the event, the employees did voluntary testing for HIV/AIDS, received free oral testing kits from TASO, and received health education focusing on HIV transmission, prevention, and treatment.
A recent report from the state-owned Uganda AIDS Commission showed that the country is on course to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030, following major declines in new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths.
The report indicated that HIV prevalence has dropped to 4.9 percent, down from 18 percent in the 1980s. Uganda has 1.5 million people living with HIV, with 1.3 million on treatment.
Uganda's performance on the global 95-95-95 targets stands at 94-90-97, which means 94 percent of people living with HIV know their status, 90 percent of those are on treatment, and 97 percent of those on treatment have achieved viral suppression. ■
