Programme Director
Members of the Executive Council
Speaker of the Northern Cape Provincial Legislature
Mayors and Councilors
Co Chairperson of the Provincial AIDS Council, Mr Beau Nkaelang
Members of Civil society
Faith Based Organisations
Members of the community
Members of the media
Ladies and Gentlemen

By now all of us are well versed with the concept of AIDS. And this pandemic or crises has received international levels of concern. To this effect World AIDS Day is observed annually on 1 December to commemorate those who have died from an AIDS-related illness as well as to demonstrate our support to those who are infected and affected by HIV and AIDS.

This day also presents an important opportunity to take stock of our successes against the pandemic, review our challenges and to reaffirm our commitment to ending the scourge of HIV, AIDS, TB and STIs plaguing our province and country.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this year’s World AIDS Day theme is “Communities at work #Reaching the 90-90-90 targets”. This theme seeks to call on all community members to rally behind and stand together in fighting the scourge of HIV. This also calls for community participation in designing and implementing locally based interventions.

The South African National Aids Council (SANAC) recently conceded that South Africa continued to record the highest and most high-profile HIV epidemic in the world.  Accounting for a third of all new HIV infections in Southern Africa, South Africa had a higher incidence rate among women aged 15 to 24. To put it into context I need to repeat it in a way that is understood by all gathered here so that we can start to comprehend the extent of the problem.

Wat ek nou gesê het is dat Suid Afrika jaar in en jaar uit die hoogste aantal mense in die wêreld het wat met die HIV Virus besmet en aangesteek word. Nie net is ons die hoogste in die wêreld nie, maar ook die mees dodelikste van die virus is ons in aanraking met.

En dit is ook sleg want jong vroue tussen die ouderdom van vyftien en vyf en twintig word die ergste geraak. Die inligting wat ons het is dat hierdie vroue drie maal meer is wat siek raak of wat aangesteek word met die virus as wat mans is. Dit is waar ons nou moet keer. En die gemeenskap moet ons help. In hierdie tyd wat ons die Sestien Dae van geen geweld teen vroue en kinders implimenteer, moet ons ekstra waaksaam wees teen die misbruik van vroue en kinders.

The 16 Days campaign seeks to promote the protection of women and children and this is not only confined to this period of the year- but throughout the year. The impact of violence and the senseless rape and killing of women and children has a detrimental effect on society, the family and the victim if she is fortunate to live to tell her story.  Often enough the victims of these brutal attacks has over and above the physical and lifelong emotional scars, still deal with the real threat and reality of being infected with the HIV virus.

Ladies and gentlemen, despite the country having the largest anti-retroviral treatment programme in the world, serving an estimated 4.4 million people, it is concerning to find little behaviour change seem to have occurred. Wat dit beteken is dat ten spyte van die Regering se beste pogings om die siekte hok te slaan, bereik ons baie min sukses. En dit is n aanduiding dat mense wat ly onder die siekte nie hulle medikasie gebruik nie. En dit is geld wat gemors word.

It has also been found that consistent condom use is low and there is an increase of early sexual debut, before the age of 15 years, especially amongst males, compared to 2012.  It has also been established that over a third of young women had sexual relationships with older men, despite the implementation of wide-ranging programmes and interventions.

Seuns so jonk as vyftien jaar oud begin nou seksueel aktief raak en wat verder bekommer is dat die meeste van hulle nie altyd kondome gebruik nie. Dit ten spyte van die feit dat hierdie regering kondome verniet verskaf. Die “sugar daddy syndrome” is ook nog steeds n groot probleem. Dit is waar jong meisies met ouer mans slap vir gunste. Hierdie jong meisies is in gevaar om dat besmet te word met die HIV virus.

Ladies and Gentlemen, government recognizes that the fight to end HIV, AIDS, TB and STI’s is a long and difficult one and it is a fight the Northern Cape government is willing and committed to fighting until the very end. In the past 25 years since the first reported cases of AIDS, we have gained valuable and vast knowledge on how to prevent and treat HIV, AIDS, TB and STI’s and have learnt to mobilise for financial resources to cover costs of our efforts against the pandemic.

Moreover, we have utilised a multi-sectorial approach to maximise our efforts in our collective fight against this scourge.  
Although much more work has to be done, our efforts have led to the attainment of significant gains in the fight against the pandemic, and these include the following:

HIV prevalence among women attending antenatal care has remained stable for the past five years at around 17% with no significant change (according to the 2017 National Antenatal HIV Prevalence Survey)
HIV incidence rates decreased from 0.43% to 0.24% in the period 2012 to 2017. This represents a 44% decrease in infection rates during the same period.

In the first two years of the National Strategic Plan, a total of 575 897 people were tested for HIV and this achievement was due to health education and an increase in community testing.

The Province is looking at further improving current efforts through the training on the Index HIV Testing that was held in August this year.  
HIV Index testing is a testing model that involves provision of HIV testing to family members of known PLHIV (index clients) who are at an increased risk of HIV infection such as sexual partners and children under 5 years. The Province will roll-out this intervention together with NGOs.

There has been an improved implementation of the Universal Test and Treat programme which has seen the number of HIV positive people enrolled into treatment increasing to 59 347 by the end March this year (2019).

Currently all facilities in the Northern Cape have nurses trained in ART treatment initiation to ensure that patients diagnosed with HIV are started on treatment on the very same day. Coupled with treatment enrolment, the Department of Health has established Adherence Clubs and by end of March this year already there were 98 of these clubs. These adherence clubs would ensure that people that are on treatment adhere to their treatment and do not default.

90-90-90 Programme

At the end of September 2019, of the 84599 people estimated to be living with HIV, 88.9% know their HIV status.
86.5% of People living with HIV were enrolled into ART treatment
83.6% of clients on treatment were virally suppressed.

Ladies and gentlemen, the National Health Minister, Dr. Zweli Mkhize, on Wednesday (27th November 2019) launched a new advanced anti-retroviral medication in the Ugu District Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal. This new combination drug is said to provide significant benefits to patients. This new three-in-one pill promises to accelerate viral suppression in those living with HIV throughout the country and help people with HIV to take control of their health faster with fewer side effects. The country will avert more than 300 000 new HIV infections in the next two decades, and the TLD is much cheaper than the previous combination, therefore we will be able to treat more people with the resources at hand.

I am pleased to report that the Northern Cape Province will start rolling-out the new treatment combination from 3rd February 2020.

Ladies and Gentlemen, these successes represent concerted efforts by government, civil society and the private sector to address the single and greatest challenges facing humanity today. Importantly these successes represent the result of  evidence based interventions, dedicated leadership and the recognition that HIV and AIDS is not a health issue but a cross sectoral developmental issue which requires a mult-sectoral approach to deal with it.

Despite the success we have gained against the pandemic, the disheartening fact remains that up until now we have failed to fully utilise the vast knowledge that we have gained over the years to mount the decisive blow required to successfully end HIV and AIDS. The incredible progress that we have made against HIV/AIDS has created a sense of complacency that is threatening our ability to end HIV/AIDS within our lifetime. As a result, a number of challenges and drawbacks still persists in our fight to end the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

Dames en here, een van die ernstige nagevolge van die HIV virus is dat dit die immune stelsel erg affekteer en ons ligaam kan dan nie baklei teen siektes nie. Een van hierdie erge siektes is TB. Ek doen ‘n beroep op almal wat aan TB en ook ander siektes lei om asseblief U medikasie op tyd te drink en om ‘n gesonde leefwyse aan te neem. Dit is nie net vir U nie, maar ook vir U kinders en omdat ons U nodig het om aan hierdie wonderlike provinsie te help bou.

Ladies and gentlemen, although our many challenges and setbacks seem increasingly insurmountable, this under no circumstances means that we will waver in our efforts to end the pandemic.

As this Sixth Administration we will however continuously strive to achieve the goals that the Freedom Charter set for us and that were further institutionalised in the economic rights spelt out in the Constitution of our country. We will therefore also seek out partnerships to assist us in making available modern health facilities in especially rural areas to make it possible for us to meet these goals.

I would like to make a plea once again to the young people- the generation of tomorrow, the architects and builders of a modern, growing and successful province to be responsible in the choices they make. You are the tomorrow we look to. The prosperous South Africa we seek to achieve. If we are to achieve the vision of a modern, growing and successful province we will need our young people to be healthy, educated and economically active. Not sexually active at a young age- but actively improving your lives and that of the community you live in.

My plea is that you remain in school and that you avoid the pitfalls of peer pressure. Pressure such as substance abuse, irresponsible consumption of alcohol and reckless sexual practices robs our young people of that prosperous and successful tomorrow that belongs to them. If at all you feel that you cannot abstain then the next logical thing to do is to be responsible and make sure that you or your partner is properly protected against any sexual transmitted diseases and prevent the risk of contracting HIV.

Ons jongmense is ons toekoms en ons nodig nou meer as ooit ‘n gesonde jong generasie wat hierdie provinsie tot nuwe hoogtes sal neem. Ons het ‘n dwelm, HIV en TB vrye generasie nodig om te bou aan ons provinsie en ons toekoms.

As I conclude, I wish to express my gratitude to everyone who made the effort today to empower people that the only way to live positivley is to speak openly and honestly about our experiences. Let us in this spirit guard the gains made by our democracy and unite to fight the scourge of HIV/ AIDS and improve the quality of life of all our people. As we join hands let us deepen and strengthen our response and seek innovative ways to sustain our interventions over the short, medium and long-term.

Dames en here baie dankie vir U teenwoordigheid vandag. Ek vertrou dat U my boodskap nie net sal neem na ander toe nie, maar dat U lewenswyse sal verander en dat U die hand van U regering sal neem en saam met ons HIV/AIDS sal beveg.

Dankie
Thank you