HIV prevalence among Ugandan babies 'is not acceptable'

The high prevalence of HIV among babies in Uganda has been criticised by the United Nations.

According to Musa Bungudu, country coordinator for Uganda at UNAIDS, about 135,000 people in the African nation are infected with the virus every year, while 20,000 babies are born carrying HIV.

This, he said, is "politically, socially and morally unacceptable", the Daily Monitor reports.

Mr Bungudu noted that about 50,000 expectant mothers in Uganda are currently HIV positive, which means there is a "high chance" of their babies being born with the condition.

"60,000 people die of the same disease every year," he noted.

The Uganda Aids Commission is currently calling for action to tackle this problem to be stepped up.

Indeed, the group has argued that previous efforts to address the issue have yielded positive results in the past, which means new strategies should be put in place to deal with HIV in the present.