[Papua New Guinea] Poverty Fuels The Spread Of AIDS, Doctor Says

from Pacific Islands

An inquiry by parliamentarians has found that poverty is a major factor fuelling the spread of HIV/AIDS in Papua New Guinea.

Chairman of the special Parliamentary Committee on HIV/AIDS Dr Banare Bun said this in Port Moresby yesterday during the first National HIV/AIDS Summit.

“Poverty is the key issue in the fight against HIV/AIDS,’’ he said, but refused to give more information on the findings of the inquiry, saying instead that a full report would soon be tabled in Parliament.

However, he said the challenge for the leaders at the political level was to look at how to address poverty.

“We (politicians) should lead by example by providing opportunities for people to put money in their pockets,” Dr Bun said.

“I agree with Dame Carol Kidu (Community Development Minister) that the informal sector has to be developed for people to make money and look after themselves. If they don’t, they will get involved in risky behaviour,” he said.

Dr Bun presented a paper, role of political leadership in HIV prevention, in which he said there were three things which would bring PNG down in the next 10 to 15 years if these were not addressed adequately.

They are corruption and bribery, law and order and HIV/AIDS.

He said corruption and bribery was eating away the fabric of society, law and order issue needed more than police to address and HIV/AIDS was growing at an exponential rate, poverty has to be addressed along with other factors to bring the rate down........