Da Nang’s HIV/AIDS Prevention Centre and the Viet Nam Health Improvement Project (VNHIP) jointly hosted a pre-Tet celebration for children with HIV in the city and Quang Nam Province on January 22.

The event was part of a wide range of activities that the centre and donors usually organise to encourage the children and their families in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

AO-affected children in Da Nang receiving gifts from donors ahead of Tet. (Source: VNA)

The teen-age children, born with HIV/AIDS, receive medical treatment, nutrition guidance and financial support, as well as scholarships and school facilities from the centre.

Earlier this year, VNHIP, an NGO from the US, and Betula Asian Aid Foundation, had signed a new agreement on improving health care for 50 kids and young people under 25 in Da Nang over the 2017 – 2021 period. The project will aim to provide scholarships, school facilities, health care, and life-skills training for those with HIV/AIDS, and to support the children’s families.

According to the centre, some 100 kids in the city have HIV/AIDS.

The city has been one of the pioneer localities in controling the number of new HIV cases, maintaining a ratio of 0.15% of HIV cases amongst the population since 2008.

Also on January 23, the municipal Association for Victims of Agent Orange (DAVA) organised Tet celebration for AO victims in the city, which is home to more than 5,000 AO victims, 1,400 of them children. Over 54 billion VND (2.4 million USD) was raised from domestic and foreign donors for AO victims in the city.

Donors also presented gifts to nearly 5,000 poor households living in the city and the province on January 21.

(Source: VNA)