PRIME MINISTER HAILS GGML IN FIGHT AGAINST HIV & AIDS

Prime Minister, Kassim Majaliwa (right) presents GGML's Senior Manager of Health, Safety and Environment, Dr. Kiva Mvungi, with a certificate of appreciation for the company's contribution to the AIDS Trust Fund (ATF). It is the culmination of the national commemoration of World AIDS Day, held in the Morogoro region in recently.

Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa has congratulated Geita Gold Mining Company Limited (GGML) and other stakeholders for supporting the government with various contributions to continue the fight against HIV and AIDS.

He has also assured stakeholders that the government will continue to support the efforts of other stakeholders, including GGML, in fighting the AIDS epidemic in the country.

Majaliwa made the statement at the World AIDS Day commemoration on December 1, while addressing hundreds of people who attended the event in Morogoro.

"Let me acknowledge the contribution of the private sector and various institutions and development actors within and outside the country in the fight against AIDS, and certainly the recent success we have announced here is due to your participation, you stakeholders.

"Therefore, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to you because you are important stakeholders in the development of this fight. I believe that if we continue to work together with our government, we will achieve our goals and I assure you that your government will continue to support this effort to eradicate HIV/AIDS in this country," said Majaliwa.

He added that he recognised that the success in eradicating the epidemic was due to the efforts of all stakeholders, including GGML.

"I would like to congratulate and thank Geita Gold Mining Limited (GGML) for their efforts, we are very grateful for their support in funding HIV/AIDS interventions here in Tanzania," said Majaliwa.

As a result of these efforts, Majaliwa acknowledge GGML contribution to the AIDS Trust Fund (ATF) in (2023) with a certificate at the ceremony, which was received by GGML's Senior Manager of Health, Safety & Environment, Dr Kiva Mvungi.

On receipt of the certificate, Dr Mvungi said GGML's mission was to continue the efforts in the fight against HIV and AIDS that the company undertakes every year through the GGM Kili Challenge campaign for example this year GGML donated 100 million to the ATF.

Launched in 2002, the campaign involves mountaineers climbing Mount Kilimanjaro on foot and by bicycle to raise funds for the Aids Trust Fund (ATF), facilitate access to various interventions and strengthen private institutions involved in the fight against the epidemic.

The campaign has supported more than 100 projects across the country since its launch in 2002.

Earlier, Majaliwa launched a research report on AIDS indicators, which shows that new infections among people over 15 years old continue to decrease.

"New infections among people over 15 years of age continue to decrease from 72,000 in 2016/2017 to 60,000 in 2022/2023. This represents a decrease of 0.18 per cent, of which 0.24 percent are women and 0.11 percent are men," he said.

He said the government decided to conduct a study to find out the current situation of HIV and AIDS in the country and the results showed that Tanzania had made great strides in the fight against AIDS.