AIDS rates stable after years of decline - report

A report by Uganda's Ministry of Health suggests that HIV prevalence has levelled off after more than a decade of decline, a local newspaper, Sunday Vision reported. According to the HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report, the country's prevalence rate fell from 30 to 10.5 percent between 1998 and 2001, with the current rate at 6.2 percent. Although the stabilisation was expected, the leading author of the report, Dr Joshua Musinguz of the AIDS Control Programme, warned that "AIDS is still a reality and all Ugandans need to be on their guard." The report estimates that 4.8 percent of adult Ugandans are HIV-positive, with 73,830 people having died of AIDS-related illnesses in 2003.