TEHRAN — Iran is conducting HIV prevention programs to protect vulnerable women and at-risk youth from catching the virus, Health Minister Hassan Qazizadeh- Hashemi said on Tuesday.

He made the remarks during his speech at the 71st World Health Assembly (WHA) side event titled “towards universal coverage with HIV prevention services and commodities – the Global Prevention Coalition and Roadmap” held on May 22. 

Delegations of Ecuador, Haiti, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Luxembourg, Maldives, Mexico, Panama, Ukraine, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the African Group are the organizers if the event. 

“It is globally proved that once prevention programs ceased to be implemented, epidemics strike,” the minister said, adding, “Iran not only pursue Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) goals but also carry out prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) programmes.”

Moreover, special centers offering services to vulnerable women also provide them with consultation, HIV testing, tips for healthy pregnancy and social support, he noted. 

Offering services to couples living with HIV when one partner is positive and the other is negative, is part of the HIV prevention programs in Iran as well, he highlighted. 

The mission of UNAIDS is to lead, strengthen and support an expanded response to HIV and AIDS that includes preventing transmission of HIV, providing care and support to those already living with the virus, minimizing the vulnerability of individuals and communities to HIV and alleviating the impact of the epidemic. UNAIDS seeks to prevent the HIV/AIDS epidemic from becoming a severe pandemic.

UNAIDS has five goals including leadership and advocacy for effective action on the pandemic; strategic information and technical support to guide efforts against AIDS worldwide; tracking, monitoring and evaluation of the pandemic and of responses to it; civil society engagement and the development of strategic partnerships; and mobilization of resources to support an effective response.

The World Health Assembly is the supreme decision-making body for WHO. It generally meets in Geneva in May each year, and is attended by delegations from all 194 Member States. Its main function is to determine the policies of the Organization, appoint the Director-General, supervise financial policies, and review and approve the proposed programme budget. The Health Assembly is held annually in Geneva, Switzerland. The 71st World Health Assembly is underway in Geneva on May 21-26.

MQ/MG