MAURITANIA: AIDS millions for West African country

JOHANNESBURG, 10 July 2003 (PlusNews) - More than half of a recently approved US $39 million World Bank grant has been allocated to assist the Islamic Republic of Mauritania in tackling HIV/AIDS.

In a recent statement the bank confirmed that $21 million had been allocated to combat HIV/AIDS, while $18 million was put towards mining in the West African country.

The bank said the grant would assist in mainstreaming the fight against HIV/AIDS into the work of all government ministries, departments and agencies, with the involvement of the private sector.

Serge Theunynck, the bank's Mauritania AIDS project leader, said: "Mauritania is at an early stage of the epidemic spread. The project will help build its capacity to organise a pre-emptive response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic."

Theunynck said the project also aimed to maintain the country's estimated HIV/AIDS prevalence rate of below one percent.