Minister paints grim picture of AIDS in Belize

Ralph Fonseca was not the only minister with the nation’s health on his mind this morning. A sobering report on the nation’s war with AIDS was presented by Minister of Human Development Dolores Balderamos Garcia…and the news from the battlefield was not good.

Dolores Balderamos Garcia, Minister of Human Development

“HIV/AIDS has already begun to have a significant impact in Belize and its devastating effects are becoming increasingly visible every passing day. Reports in 1999 indicate that an alarming number of persons in our country are now infected with the HIV virus and sadly this ranks Belize as having the highest rate of infection per capita in Central America. In the international arena, Belize is currently in the position Uganda was in 1982, the dangerous onset of the epidemic. The Belizean people should note that unless we mount an aggressive campaign to fight this epidemic, then Africa’s frightening reality will become our own.”

Balderamos Garcia went on to urge Belizeans to face the AIDS problem head on without fear or denial. She said we can learn from the mistakes of other countries and unite to mobilize an assortment of successful strategies to control the epidemic.