NAIROBI, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- Kenya on Friday launched a strategy to eliminate mother-to-child HIV transmission by 2027.
Susan Nakhumicha, cabinet secretary in the Ministry of Health, said the strategy, dubbed "End AIDS in Children by 2027," would help tackle mother-to-child HIV transmission.
"This plan would be implemented in the next four years, and we are optimistic that we would achieve our target," Nakhumicha said in a statement issued in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya.
According to Kenya's Ministry of Health, at least 4,000 children are infected with HIV annually by their mothers at birth.
Nakhumicha said Kenya has made progress in the past decade in fighting HIV/AIDS, with a 57 percent reduction in new infections and a 68 percent decrease in AIDS-related deaths.
While treatment coverage for children living with HIV stands at 85 percent, only about 74 percent of them achieve viral suppression. "This performance gap underscores the need for urgent action," Nakhumicha said.
The strategy is expected to deepen efforts to fight the spread of HIV in children and reduce infant mortality in the East African country. ■