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Government hands out millions of AIDS booklets

South Africa's government is distributing 11 million HIV/AIDS and treatment booklets as part of its national action plan against the disease.

The 49-page booklet, in the country's 11 official languages, contains detailed information on how the HI virus is transmitted, how infection can be avoided and what antiretroviral treatment consists of.

Thami Skenjana, director of the government's AIDS Action Plan, said prevention messages remained the foundation of the government's HIV/AIDS communications, as an overwhelming majority of South Africans were not infected with HIV.

"Our utmost priority is to mobilise all South Africans to know our HIV status by going for voluntary counselling and testing. This enables us to manage our health — whether or not we are infected with HIV," the South African Press Association quoted Skenjana as saying.


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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