A representative from the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), Anele Yawa, said he was very worried that donor funding for HIV/AIDS prevention initiatives had drastically declined, despite noticeable increase in new infections.
In an interview with a talk show host on a popular radio station on New Year Day, Yawa noted that there was increase in HIV/AIDS prevalence amongst the 15-24 age group. And so, he believed that for the situation to be contained, more financial resources were needed.
“We are concerned about growing apathy from organisations that had been religiously providing assistance in various forms for many years,” Yawa said.
Various institutions involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS have observed that the campaign seems to have lost its potency. A possible explanation is the belief amongst various international agencies that South Africa, which is classified as a middle country, can manage to finance its own health programmes, amongst them HIV/AIDS interventions. As a result, the level of assistance has been reduced.