The Network of HIV Positives in Sierra Leone (NETHIPS), on Tuesday 24th October, held its first press conference on the theme ” NETHIPS Demands Uninterrupted Access to Antiretroviral Drugs (ARV).

The conference was geared at fostering good relationship with the government in providing care and support to affected individuals in the country.

Speaking at the Conference, the Program manager of the NETHIPS, Martin P. Willie, during his welcome address, highlighted the organization’s relentless efforts over the years to curtail the spread of HIV. He said their work is to treat people with the disease so they can live safely and healthily and by achieving that, he said they have made sure to get affected persons tested, and afterwards given the best of treatment.

The NETHIPS’s Executive Director, Idriss D.M Songo, also highlighted the NETHIPS commitment to ending zero cases of HIV in the country. He said, so far, approximately seventy thousand people in the country are affected with the disease. He emphasized the need for accelerating the methods of protecting oneself against such And concluded by calling on the government to provide the support it needs as an organization to carry out its activities.

Other organizations including AHF, CARKAP, and others shed light on the role they’ve played over the years in curbing the spread of the virus in the country. They emphasized the consequences on patients when they stop taking the medications which they say have both mortality and economic importance to the affected individuals.

The conference ended with questions and answers from the attendants, of which the organization is urging the government and other stakeholders to address its concerns for a better Sierra Leone.