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Activists worried about AIDS budget reduction

    JOHANNESBURG

    South African AIDS lobby group, the Treatment action Campaign (TAC), has expressed concern at the government's decision to reduce its national treatment budget for the rest of the financial year.

    The government recently reduced its HIV/AIDS budget by two-thirds for the current fiscal year, from US $42 million to $13 million, reflecting slow progress in its plan to distribute free antiretroviral drugs in all state hospitals.

    The BBC quoted TAC national secretary, Mark Heywood, as saying: "We seriously doubt the politicians' commitment to make a success of the plan. We are very concerned about what we see as totally unjustified delays... We believe this is costing people's lives."

    Budget figures for the next financial year, which starts in April, are due to be announced later this month.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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