Workshop Calls on Media in Pakistan To Raise Awareness About HIV/AIDS

The media should seek to bring awareness to HIV/AIDS issues in Pakistan, particularly in the province of Sindh and its capital city of Karachi, Sharaf Ali Shah, executive director of the Bridge Consultant Foundation, said Wednesday at a workshop organized by the Pakistan Press Foundation and the World Bank, The Nation reports. Shah said that HIV/AIDS is both a health and socioeconomic issue in the region and that officials in Karachi should take part in the development of health efforts to inform society about the stigma associated with the disease.

Salman Safdar of UNAIDS Pakistan said the media also should seek to inform the middle- and low-income segments of society about the risk of HIV/AIDS. He added that there are 2,353 HIV cases in Sindh and 167 AIDS cases. The province has recorded 56 AIDS-related deaths, Safdar added.

The Nation reports that HIV/AIDS advocates and patients at the workshop discussed the harsh treatment people living with HIV/AIDS often face (The Nation, 11/20).