THE 2007 UNAIDS epidemic update has shown a real decline in the rate of new HIV infections in some countries, and in many countries the epidemic has stabilised, this is according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Director, Mr. Nils Kastberg.He made the disclosure at the opening of the 12th Special Council for Human and Social Development on Children (COHSOD) convened recently at the Guyana International Convention Centre.

The top UNICEF official pointed out that the Caribbean has shown notable progress in the coverage of treatment and care of the disease.

Several Caribbean countries have reported near universal access to anti retroviral treatment for women and for paediatric AIDS, even though overall it is only 50% of the people in need of treatment who access it. This is still high by world standards. However more efforts need to be deployed in preventive interventions,” he underscored.

The director revealed that the HIV prevalence rates in young people range from 0.08% to 3.2% and young people have yet to adopt consistently safer sex behaviours.

They also have difficulty accessing sexual, reproductive and HIV health services and young women in particular are subject to pressures for intergenerational and/or transactional sex, Kastberg highlighted.

He lamented too that forced sexual debut is an issue affecting approximately 20% of young people and to address this situation UNICEF will support the region in implementing prevention programmes that target young people and adolescents.

The new Caribbean Regional Strategic Framework 2008-2012 takes a more country-centred approach, recognising that success in individual country programmes is essential for overall regional success in achieving Universal Access to prevention, treatment, care and support. We are pleased to note that this time issues concerning children and young people, orphans and other vulnerable children have been given prominence and UNICEF will continue to provide support in its implementation,” Kastberg noted

The UNICEF Director acknowledged that one of the areas not covered in the Framework for Building a Region fit for Children, but inherently crucial to doing so, is that of positive adolescent development.

However, he said in 2007 UNICEF Belize assumed focal point responsibility for Sub- Regional Adolescent Development under the mechanism established to advance coordination among UNICEF offices in the Caribbean.

This has resulted in the establishment of a strong partnership on adolescent and Youth Development with CARICOM which places UNICEF in a strategic position to advance the regional adolescent and youth development agenda,” the director posited.

According to Kastberg some key outcomes of this partnership with CARICOM include:

* Collaborating with CARICOM to conduct a Regional Situational Analysis of Caribbean Adolescent and Youth for presentation to the Heads of Government in July 2008. UNICEF is undertaking the analysis of the 10-14 age cohort which also includes a social spending analysis on adolescent and youth by governments in the region;

* UNICEF currently chairs the CARICOM Interagency Steering Committee on Adolescent and Youth Development which comprises of representatives from key international agencies, CARICOM and selected Youth Directors. The committee was established to provide technical assistance and coordination for the implementation of the Regional Strategy for Youth Development;

* Through this partnership UNICEF also provided technical support for the convening of a Regional Youth Directors Meeting and the 2007 COHSOD on Youth and Culture which promoted the utilisation of the Life Cycle approach to planning and programming for adolescents and youth.

He emphasised that an issue of particular interest to Guyana’s President, and of critical importance to all, is the effects of climate change on the region’s children.

The senior UNICEF official disclosed that children born today and going through school in the next 18 years will emerge as productive adults in a world profoundly altered by climate change. He explained that they will not only become familiar with water shortage, food insecurity, poor sanitation and health but also with the major consequences of these impacts for the potential acceleration of migration, conflict, poverty, social and economic instability.