UNAIDS praises Thailand for successfully limiting mother-to-child HIV transmissions

BANGKOK, June 21 (TNA) - Representatives of international health organizations, including UNAIDS, have praised Thailand for being the first Asian country and the second in the world that successfully keeps the mother-to-child transmission rate of HIV and syphilis below 2 per cent. The representatives expressed the apppreciation while meeting Thai Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-ocha at Bangkok's Government House on June 20. The representatives included those from the World Health Organization (WHO), the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the United Nations Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), and Thailand MOPH-US CDC Collaboration (TUC). The Thai prime minister attributed the success to support from the international health organizations and Her Royal Highness Princess Soamsawali and promised Thailand's continual cooperation with the international community to develop international capabilities to control AIDS. The Thai premier stressed that his government has seriously worked out comprehensive solutions to health problems and will emphasize health work at the regional level. WHO's regional director, meanwhile, praised Thailand for long partnerships with international health organizations, resulting in the successful disease control, saying the country is also considered as a model of successful health work. A UNAIDS deputy director appreciated Thai administrators for providing people with good access to health services, while a UNICEF representative expected Thailand to be able to end AIDS within 2030. (TNA)