GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Guyana’s Ministry of Health, through the Global Fund, has received US$4.1 million to aid the country’s efforts to control and eliminate the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Tuberculosis (TB).

Earlier this week, Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony, and Executive Director of the National Coordination Coalition (NCC), Simone Sills, signed an agreement which will see a partnership to implement activities and programmes to tackle the diseases.

“We believe that the partnership that we have here would help us to extend the kind of programmes that we need to reach people, especially those who have fallen out of the treatment programme,” said Anthony.

He also said that the partnership will also assist the government in getting more educational content out to the regions, especially on the importance of TB treatment to prevent drug resistance.

“Part of this relationship that we have would help us to do more TB education so that people can become more compliant and in addition to becoming more compliant, we would then be able to prevent multiple drug resistance TB,” he added.

The health minister said non-governmental bodies will help the ministry to reach its target of achieving 90 per cent of the population knowing their HIV status, 90 per cent who tested positive receiving treatment and 90 per cent on treatment being virally suppressed.

Meanwhile, Sills said the non-governmental organisations are pleased to be a partner in the fight against the diseases.

“This partnership will entail working in six regions across Guyana to assist in addressing the three what we call the three 90s goal for persons living with HIV, as well as increasing the number of persons that have access and treatment to TB treatment as well as services,” she said.