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With the support of PASCA and UNDP we held two national training sessions on Monitoring and Evaluation for all key partners to increase our collective capacity and establish systems to better research, plan, monitor and evaluate the national response to HIV/AIDS.
Partners such as PASMO, the CDC, the BDF and the MOH helped to provide valuable strategic information on condom use among female sex workers, men who have sex with men, knowledge attitudes and surveillance among the BDF, and a comprehensive Situation Analysis of our national response.
The CDC is currently funding a Behaviour Surveillance Study which will also tell us for the first time a scientific estimation of the number of men who have sex with men and sex workers in Belize so that we can use those numbers to target our interventions and measure their success.
The country response was successful in procuring a 6 million US Dollar grant from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS Tuberculosis and Malaria. The grant will allow us to increase and expand our prevention, care and treatment, research initiatives over the next four years.
The next major accomplishment in coordination of the national response this past year is the development of our new National Strategic Plan which is now complete in draft and ready for submission to Cabinet for endorsement. This document will ensure higher levels of coordination, efficiency and transparency in all that we do and sets the bar for more strategic steps toward the overarching goals of Zero New Infections, Zero Stigma and Discrimination and Zero AIDS-related deaths.
Through the Global Fund, the Ministry of Education and Youth has done an assessment of the teaching of the Health and Family Life Education Curriculum in primary schools across the country. This assessment paves the way for the strengthening of the curriculum which will now be rolled out in high schools.
The Women's Department has contributed to the education of women about their rights and how the Gender Based Violence Legislation protects them from sexual behaviour. The department also started to work with men to help them see how they can play a key role in creating gender equality and reducing the risk of unwanted STI transmission to women.
2011 marked the formation of our first registered NGO made up of and working for Persons Living with HIV. We are all very proud of this milestone in our efforts to increase the meaningful participation of PWHIV in our national response. The network called, the Collaborative Network of Persons with HIV have procured funding for activities now being implemented.
The Ministry of Labour is currently training another set of 12 companies so that they are empowered to establish workplace HIV Policies and action plans to educate, protect and care for their employees. This will expand our prevention and behaviour change outreach to a significant component of one of our target populations. The Ministry also published the Belize Employer's Guide on HIV and AIDS in the Workplace.
The MOH worked with PWHIV and the doctors on the front line as well as health policy experts to revise and upgrade our national guidelines for treating HIV/AIDS. These guidelines ensure the highest standard of ARV treatment, diagnostic testing and monitoring of positive clients - which will now translate into longer and better quality lives for those living with HIV.
The Capacity Project, our partners in the public health facilities have formally linked with Civil Society and other Government and Community stakeholders to form a Continuum of Care which is client centered and focused on ensuring the high standards of care and treatment for PWHIV.
The government continues to ensure free Anti-Retroviral Therapies for all those deemed ready to start ARV drugs. The list of drugs available has been upgraded to include second line medication when clients become resistant to first line medications.