Sudan Vision Daily News Paper Official Website - Reversing the Brain Drain: Sudanese Expatriates Establish an HIV Working Group

Edited by: Alula Berhe Kidani
UNDP organized on Sunday 10 August in Khartoum a press conference in connection with the announcement of "Sudan HIV/AIDS Working Group"; a voluntary network of Sudanese and non Sudanese healthcare professionals with a special interest in HIV/AIDS who seek to contribute to fight back HIV/AIDS in Sudan.

According to the 2008 UNAIDS report, some 350.000 men and women are living with HIV/AIDS in Sudan. Unlike other countries in the region, instead of denying the existence of the epidemic, Sudan decided to deal with this serious threat to the health and survival of an estimated 1.4% among the adult population.

Since 2005, HIV has rapidly moved to the centre of government attention as a key health and development issue. A national response is being led by the Sudan National AIDS Program (SNAP) with the assistance of a number of national and international NGOs, and UN agencies and the financial support of the UNDP managed Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and malaria grants amounting to $ 32,5 million over the 2005-2008 period.

According to SNAP, 94 free Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centres and 35 HIV/AIDS care and treatment centre have been established and equipped across 15 northern states, in addition to 7 prevention mother-to-child transmission centres. So far 2,100 HIV/AIDS patients have been receiving free antiretroviral treatment kits that are worth 35 dollar in the Sudanese market and cover a one month treatment.

In addition, a draft law on protection of people living with HIV/AIDS has been developed and validated by the main government and civil society partners. While the Sudanese government and society have made positive strides in dealing with stigma and discrimination under the patronage of the Sudan's first lady, a major challenge facing the national response to the epidemic is due to the clinical management of HIV/AIDS. Through the UNDP managed Global Fund grants, HIV sophisticated equipment are being procured, but setting up HIV services requires a state-of-the art expertise that is not often available in the country.

Responding to the country's need for strengthening the human capacity of HIV clinicians, four Sudanese expatriates living in the United Kingdom and South Africa namely Dr. El Bushra Herieka; Dr. Zahir babiker; Dr. Hamad Abdelhadi and Dr. Abdel-Kareem Gibreel Elgoni have volunteered three weeks to train over 60 Sudanese physicians on the clinical management of HIV/AIDS. As healthcare professionals serving in the UK and South Africa with a special interest in HIV/AIDS, these volunteers are training Sudanese clinicians drawn from 15 Northern States on how to better screen, diagnose and treat people living with HIV/AIDS.

At a media event to be held on Sunday 10 August in Khartoum, Drs. Herieka, Babiker, Elhadi, and Elgoni will talk about their respective experience in dealing with HIV in Sudan and announce the establishment of the Sudanese HIV/AIDS Working Group (SHAWG); a voluntary network of Sudanese and non Sudanese healthcare professionals with a special interest in HIV/AIDS who seek to contribute to fight back HIV/AIDS in Sudan. (http://www.shawg.org).

Prior to the press conference, the media is also invited to attend a session during which Dr. Bushra Hereika will present an overview of the antiretroviral therapy (09:00-09:45 am) followed by Dr. Hamad Abdulhadi. Addressing Current Treatment Strategies (09:45-10:15 am).

The four expatriates' response is part of the Transfer of Knowledge through Expatriate Nationals (TOKTEN) project; a UNDP initiative that aims to bring back to the country the expertise of highly qualified professionals living abroad whose number has been estimated at 3,426. The project's database counts a total of 315 highly qualified Sudanese expatriates living mainly in the UK, USA, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, South Africa, Kenya, and the Gulf countries, who are willing to transfer their knowledge to help rebuild their home country.
The Sudanese Expatriates have trained during this first round 60 doctors from all over Sudan and have announced that the training workshop will be increased to two times every year. In addition, SHAWS will work to enlist more Sudanese expatriates to provide training in other fields of the medical profession.
SNAP (Sudan National AIDS Programme) Director, Dr. Mohamed Ahmed Abdel Hafez and Expatriate Dr. Hamid Abdel Hadi stressed strongly on the role of the media on awareness rising about HIV/AIDS. They also pointed to the Media role in combating the social stigma against HIV/AIDS patients.
SNAP Director also said that in March 2009 a survey will be conducted to determine the rate of HIV/AIDS prevalence in Sudan.