By IPS Correspondents
OUAGADOUGOU, Nov 30 2006 (IPS)

“I think free treatment for all (HIV) infected people is indispensable, just as safeguarding the jobs of those with HIV is a must,” says Issa Kindo, a public health physician in Ouagadougou, capital of Burkina Faso.

Fine words. But, what progress are authorities in this West African nation making towards achieving universal – and free – AIDS treatment for its citizens?

Apparently, much remains to be done: only subsidised care is available at present, even though dire poverty puts this treatment beyond the reach of many.

According to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), HIV prevalence in Burkina Faso stands at 4.2 percent. Of the 700,000 people infected by the virus, about 100,000 require anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs).

But, figures from the Ministry of Health note that just 6,666 were receiving medication at the end of September 2005 (the number has risen since), up from 2,200 in December 2002 – and 4,220 in 2004.

“Access to ARVs has clearly improved. The number of those being treated has practically tripled,” says Gaston Ouédraogo, an official at the Ministry of Health. “More than 7,000 people infected with HIV are (currently) receiving…ARV treatment, which prolongs their life expectancy.”

In addition, about 15,000 more people are expected to receive ARVs by 2008, says the ministry.

But, subsidised treatment available at public clinics presently costs some nine dollars a month per patient. Add to that the amount of about five dollars that patients have to pay for monitoring, and persons on treatment are looking at a total cost of over 14 dollars each month.

This amount is beyond the reach of a good many people in Burkina Faso. According to the 2006 Human Development Report, produced by the United Nations Development Programme, 46.2 percent of Burkina Faso’s 13 million citizens live below the poverty line of a dollar a day.

According to the Ministry of Health, the cost of ARVs has already been reduced several times. In April 2001 the cost fell from 585 to 175 dollars a month; in July 2002, it was further reduced to 95 dollars – then to 14.3 dollars in 2004, due to a government subsidy.

Nonetheless, more than 200 anti-AIDS organisations which have formed an alliance called the Network for Access to Essential Medication (Réseau pour l’accès aux médicaments essentials, RAME) launched a petition for free treatment in 2004. This was in a bid to have parliament “vote in laws that legislate fully free treatment and provide for medical centres around the country to become ARV treatment centres,” said Simon Kabore of the national coordinating body of RAME, which is based in Ouagadougou.

The current state of affairs leaves Séraphin Ouédraogo, who is HIV-positive, scratching his head.

“With the money that Burkina Faso gets, ARVs could be completely free. It’s a question of political will. What are they doing with all that money?” he asks.

The funds in question were allocated by the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which in 2003 approved a subsidy of nearly 20 million dollars over four years for Burkina Faso.

Additional funding worth over 70 million dollars has also been provided, including a 47 million dollar grant from the World Bank to fund the country’s 2006-2010 strategic plan for HIV/AIDS, this according to UNAIDS. The programme was approved in August, and will get underway early 2007.

The National Council Against AIDS says that under the plan, which has an estimated cost of 290 million dollars, there is expected to be a sevenfold increase in the number of people receiving anti-retroviral treatment. It also provides for HIV screening and treatment centres in the country’s inland regions.

In addition, the Ministry of Health launched a Programme for Prevention of Mother/Child Transmission of HIV (Programme de la prévention de la transmission mère/enfant du VIH – PTME) in Burkina Faso’s major cities in 2003.

As part of PTME, the Pietro Annigoni Centre for Bio-Molecular Research (Centre de recherche bio-moléculaire Pietro Annigoni, CERBA) was inaugurated in October – with Luc Montagnier, co-discoverer of the AIDS virus, in attendance.

“In its research, CERBA collaborates with five Italian universities,” says its co-ordinator, Jacques Simporé.

CERBA will have sophisticated equipment which can help analyse resistance to ARVs. The centre is also treating malnourished HIV-positive children with spirulina, a type of algae rich in protein that is now being produced in Burkina Faso.

Still, as countries around the globe mark World AIDS Day, Friday, questions about whether Burkina Faso’s government is being truly accountable to the poorest of its citizens will doubtless be asked.

World AIDS Day 2006 is focusing on “Accountability”, this as part of an over-arching theme, ‘Stop AIDS. Keep the Promise’, that has been in place for the commemorative day since 2004.

For Mariam Traoré, a mother of two and fruit vendor who contracted HIV about a decade ago, the needs are clear. Since 2004, she has been amongst those fortunate enough to receive ARVs, at the Pissy medical center in western Ouagadougou. But, she hasn’t forgotten about those who are going without treatment.

“I’m hoping that the government and organisations will get more involved in paying for treatment, since many simply do not have the money,” she told IPS with a sigh.

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