U.S. Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Bryan Hunt led a team of Embassy staff to participate in a World AIDS Day Walk organised by the Ministry of Health on December 1, 2013. The Embassy joined with the Government of Guyana, international donors, and civil society in honouring those who are living with HIV and their families, remembering those who have lost their lives to the disease, and paying homage to all those who are working towards an AIDS-free generation. 

This year, the United States established the theme of World AIDS Day 2013 as “Shared Responsibility-Strengthening Results for an AIDS-Free Generation.” In his remarks at the end of the programme, Chargé Hunt stated that “it is a testament to the collective efforts of government, donor partners, and civil society that the picture in Guyana has improved dramatically, and Guyanese institutions are now poised to take on ever greater responsibility for continuing to combat the disease.”
In 2003, President George W. Bush launched the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the U.S. Government initiative with a goal to help save the lives of those suffering from HIV/AIDS around the world. This commitment is the largest by any nation to combat a single disease internationally and PEPFAR investments also help alleviate suffering from other diseases across the global health spectrum. PEPFAR-supported programmes have created new hope for millions around the world, and scientific advances have brought the goal of achieving an AIDS-free generation within sight.
2013 marks a decade of PEPFAR’s remarkable achievements in helping protect people against this deadly virus. To commemorate PEPFAR’s 10 Year Anniversary, PEPFAR partners in Guyana will highlight the many programmes and accomplishments of this initiative, culminating in a celebration on World AIDS Day 2014. Over the past ten-years of intensive investment in combatting HIV/AIDS globally, partnerships between governments, international donors, and civil society have created new hope for millions around the world.
A statement from the U.S. Embassy said: “Thanks to the efforts of all of our partners, HIV/AIDS infection rates in Guyana have stabilized. The people of Guyana are assured an adequate, safe supply of blood. Laboratory and surveillance capacity is in place to monitor and respond to the epidemic. Pregnant HIV positive mothers are assured to know their status and receive necessary preventative care, so as to prevent infecting their unborn babies. Voluntary counselling and testing centres have grown exponentially across the country and thousands now know their HIV status. For those infected with the disease, care and antiretroviral treatment is readily available. Despite these many successes, there is still work to be done to achieve an AIDS-free generation.”
The Georgetown-based U.S. Embassy also noted that “creating an AIDS-free generation is a shared responsibility.”
It said the U.S. will continue to play its part in this global fight, but no one can do it alone. “To achieve sustainable health systems, we must continue to work with partner countries, including Guyana, in advancing their efforts to take on the responsibility of caring for their own people,” the embassy stated.