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PHILIPPINES: DOH-CAR launches LHIVE Free campaign to stop HIV/AIDS

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BAGUIO CITY, December 27, 2018 – Philippines – The Department of Health – Cordillera launched a new campaign to put a stop to the increasing number of individuals affected by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).

DOH-Cordillera OIC Regional Director Dr. Amelita Pangilinan and Mary Joy Morin of the DOH Central Office National AIDS & STI Prevention and Control Program led the launching of the “LHIVE- Free” campaign during the awarding of the academic and skills competition on HIV/AIDS Awareness and the search for the Reyna di Cordillera as HIV and AIDS Advocacy Ambassadors in Baguio City recently.

Morin said the LHIVE- Free campaign aims to encourage the key population at risk for HIV such as males having sex with males to get tested, seek treatment if they have HIV, be educated and empowered about the proper use of condom and help them live a worry-free life.

The LHIVE- Free campaign will also reach out to partners who will serve as enablers and support groups, hence the word FREE means F for family and friends, R is for religious and political leaders, E is for educators and media, and the last E is for employers and the community.

“We are confronted with seriously worsening concern on HIV,” Morin said citing the 32 new HIV cases per day.

“We are the highest in the rate of increase of HIV in the Asia Pacific Region. Persons at risk for HIV are afraid or shy away from getting and HIV test. There is extremely low level of knowledge on HIV, especially the modes of transmission and ways of prevention, even among those who already in risky sexual behaviors. The use of condoms among those who engage in anal sex is also very low. There are persons who are already HIV positive and still decide to delay treatment,” she said.

In Baguio City, 33 new cases of HIV and AIDS were recorded in Baguio City from January to August this year, the Epidemiology Bureau of the Department of Health (DOH) has reported. This brings to 307 the total number of HIV/AIDS cases in the city since monitoring started in 1984.

Cordillera statistics   show that there are a total of 457 HIV/AIDS cases from 1984 to August 2018. Benguet has 54 cases; Abra, 50; Kalinga, 13; Ifugao, 12; Apayao, 11; and Mountain Province, 10. A total of 61 new cases were recorded from January-July in the region.

“Let us continue to work together so we can witness a generation where people with HIV can live free of fear, stigma and discrimination and the rest of the population,” Morin said.

 

By: Redjie Melvic M. Cawis

Philippine Information Agency

 

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Caribbean News

Kenya’s Minister of Interior and National Administration Reports on Mission to Haiti

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February 8, 2025

 

“The Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission in Haiti continues to grow in troop numbers amid assurance of ironclad support from the international community.

This morning, I saw off an additional 144 police officers comprising 120 men and 24 women to bolster the 600 officers deployed earlier who have already made commendable progress in reducing gang violence in the Caribbean nation. Other countries, notably Guatemala and El Salvador, have in recent weeks deployed additional officers. Together with Jamaican and Belizean troops, and supported by Haitian police, we’re making concerted efforts to establish order.

Kenya’s leadership in this noble mission, which is supported by the UN Trust Fund for Haiti established under the UN Security Council Resolution 2699, is in recognition of our long-standing contribution to peacekeeping missions and peace support operations.

We’re constantly in touch with the UN and countries supporting this mission including the USA whose support in equipment and funding has been invaluable and unwavering.

Inspector General National Police Service Mr Douglas Kanja, Internal Security and National Administration PS Dr Raymond Omollo, Foreign and Diaspora Affairs PS Dr Korir Sing’Oei, National Security Advisor to the President Dr Monica Juma and Deputy National Security Advisor Mr Joseph Boinnet, among other senior officials, joined me in seeing off the contingent.”

 

Onesimus Kipchumba Murkomen

Ministry of. Interior and National Administration

Kenya

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Latin America and Caribbean

Latin America and the Caribbean Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2024

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MEDIA RELEASE

 

QUICK SUMMARY

Key findings specific to The Bahamas based on the report:

Food Security and Undernourishment:

  • In the 2021–2023 period, The Bahamas had one of the lowest prevalence rates of moderate or severe food insecurity in the Caribbean at 17.2%​​.
  • Data on undernourishment for The Bahamas is not consistently available, but the country has been noted for relatively better food security conditions compared to others in the region​.

Affordability of a Healthy Diet:

  • In 2022, The Bahamas had a high cost of a healthy diet at 5.41 PPP dollars per person per day, higher than the Caribbean average of 5.16 PPP dollars.

Policy Framework:

  • The Bahamas’ National Food and Nutrition Security Policy and Action Plan (2017–2021) identifies climate variability as a significant driver of food insecurity. It includes objectives to strengthen resilience against crises, including climate-related impacts​.

Climate and Food Systems:

  • Climate variability and extremes are acknowledged as challenges to the country’s agrifood systems. Investments in resilience and better governance are highlighted as essential for mitigating these impacts​

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News

What the State Department says about Marco Rubio; former Florida Senator CONFIRMED 99-0

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The USA, January 25, 2025 – Marco Rubio was born in Miami, Florida in 1971. Rubio is the son of Cuban immigrants who left Cuba in pursuit of the American Dream. His father worked as a banquet bartender, while his mother split time as a stay-at-home mom and hotel maid. From an early age, Rubio learned the importance of faith, family, community, and dignified work.

Rubio is passionate about the American Dream because he’s lived it himself. He was drawn to public service in large part because of conversations with his grandfather, who witnesses how communism destroyed his homeland. After meeting and marrying his wife Jeanette, Rubio served as a City Commissioner in West Miami and as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives. In 2010, he won a seat in the U.S. Senate. He served as U.S. Senator until 2025.

During his tenure in the U.S. Senate, Rubio was committed to serving the people of Florida and ensuring America remained a strong, resilient nation for generations to come. Rubio was a Senior Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Vice Chair of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, a member of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, as well as the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

Rubio wrote and passed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which represents the greatest turning point in U.S.-China relations in decades. He also co-led the Hong Kong Relations Act, and the VERDAD Act. During the first Trump Administration, he worked with the President to hold members of the Cuban regime accountable, including the dictatorship’s military holding company. Rubio also created the Paycheck Protection Program, which helped save millions of small businesses in America when the COVID pandemic hit.

In November 2024, President Trump nominated Rubio to serve as America’s Secretary of State. Secretary Rubio was the first cabinet member who was confirmed in the second Trump Administration. He received a historic unanimous vote of 99-0 in the U.S. Senate.

Rubio was sworn in as the 72nd Secretary of State on January 21, 2025. Secretary Rubio’s priority is to have a Department of State that puts America First.

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