ARUSHA, Tanzania, June 19 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania on Tuesday launched a six-month test and treat campaign that seeks to put people with HIV on anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) immediately upon testing positive.
Speaking during the launch in the country's capital Dodoma, Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa directed local government leaders to sensitize residents to take HIV test so that those found with the virus can start medication immediately.
Majaliwa encouraged Tanzanians to come out and test for the virus and those found to be living with the virus to start using the drugs.
He particularly said men should be given special attention in the campaign since they normally do not respond to such initiatives as positively as their female counterparts.
Majaliwa reaffirmed Tanzania's commitment to working with other development partners towards achieving its goal of eradicating AIDS.
According to statistics by the Tanzania Commission for AIDS (TACAIDS), Tanzania has an estimated 1.4 million people living with HIV, but only 52 percent of them are aware of their condition.
The disease has mostly affected the youth aged between 14 and 25, says TACAIDS.