South Korea To Give USD 100,000 In Response To HIV Outbreak In Pakistan

The government of the Republic of Korea has decided to extend humanitarian assistance of USD 100,000 in cash through the World Health Organization (WHO) to help respond to Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) outbreak in Larkana district, Sindh

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Jul, 2019 ) :The government of the Republic of Korea has decided to extend humanitarian assistance of USD 100,000 in cash through the World Health Organization (WHO) to help respond to Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) outbreak in Larkana district, Sindh.

The HIV spread was reported mainly in Larkana district as of July 13 this year 935 people have been confirmed with the virus including 760 children aged under 15 with ratio of 82%.

WHO Representative in Pakistan Dr Palitha Mahipala had called on Ambassador of the Republic of Korea in Islamabad Kwak Sung-kyu on July 10 in order to garnering support for WHO project to respond to unprecedented HIV outbreak in Larkana district.

The Korean Embassy played a constructive role in Seoul's making the decision to support the noble cause of the WHO project, sympathizing with the grave concern that HIV is spreading rapidly and the majority of the victims are children.

Despite South Korea's commitment, there remains a significant funding gap for the WHO project, as it requires USD 4.5 million for the next two years for preventing the spread of transmission of HIV infection in Pakistan and reducing the suffering among the HIV infected population, especially children.

Informing Dr Mahipala of South Korea's decision for support, Ambassador Kwak mentioned "I expect that other governments and international NGOs will join South Korea in supporting WHO's efforts in responding to the HIV outbreak in Pakistan.""WHO highly appreciates the valuable support made by the Government of the Republic of Korea enabling WHO to scale up its response to the HIV affected population in Larkana district", Dr Palitha expressed in a bilateral meeting with Ambassador Kwak.