The first African Great Lakes AIDS conference is being held in the Ugandan city of Entebbe from 6 to 9 September, attended by representatives from 20 African countries. According to the PR Newswire service, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is due to be presented with a special award for his fight against HIV/AIDS. The aim of the conference is to identify and assess gaps in resources to try and improve HIV/AIDS care in the Great Lakes region. The conference has been organised by an international initiative of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. President Museveni pointed out that in the developing countries, the epidemic was leading to a severe loss of productive labour, of valuable expertise and long-earned experience. Michael Weinstein, the president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, said Uganda had shown that a significant and sustainable reduction of HIV infection could be achieved through effective social marketing, widespread availability of condoms and strong political will.
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