International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

Ministers in Tanzania have raised concerns that programmes to boost awareness of HIV/Aids - including the conditions' transmission - are failing to lead to behavioural changes.

According to William Lukuvi, the Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office, behavioural change is one of the biggest challenges facing politicians and healthcare workers.

Mr Lukuvi claimed that awareness in itself was not an issue as 99 per cent of people already know what HIV/Aids is.

He told AllAfrica.com that a number of factors were having a hugely detrimental effect on people's handling of the pandemic.

"Stigmatisation of people living with HIV/Aids is also another test we face in addressing the scourge," Mr Lukuvi concluded.

It is estimated that two million people in Tanzania have HIV/Aids and just over a third of these are on anti-retroviral treatment.

Recent research conducted in Canada and published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal suggested that the prosecution of people who do not tell their partners they are HIV positive should be abolished.

Alexandra George