Saarc-member states have vowed to effectively tackle the growing menace of HIV particularly among the young people in this region by exchanging knowledge and learning from each others experience.
A two-day conference on HIV with the theme "Children and Young People," attended by all the seven Saarc-member countries, including Pakistan deliberated upon the various proposals and suggestions to carve out collective strategy for effective control and prevention of the disease among the young people.
The conference also adopted a communiqué at the conclusion with emphasis on checking the menace of AIDS particularly among the young people through adopting further concrete measures.
Health Secretary Tariq Farooq representing Pakistan at the conference, presented a comprehensive paper on National AIDS Control Programme and elaborated various measures, initiated by the Pakistan government to address this problem.
Later, talking to APP here, Tariq Farooq said Pakistan's National AIDS control programme based on the best organised and active strategy was immensely appreciated by the representatives of the Saarc-member states at the conference.
Replying to a question, Tariq Farooq said though the prevalence of HIV is less in Pakistan, it is rated as high-risk country, adding the highest number of AIDS patients is in India, which is around five million.
While in all the rest of the six Saarc-member countries the total number of HIV patients is less than 100,000.
Officially reported and documented figures of the HIV patients in Pakistan are 2,300, however, UN AIDS report, which is not evidence-based indicates the higher figure, he added.