By Abdulai Fornah
The Director General of the National Aids Secretariat (NAS) of Sierra Leone Abdul Rahman Sesay has in an exclusive with AWE-Media.SL earlier today disclosed that persons that have been enrolled for Prep drug are 99% safe interms of contracting the HIV and AIDS.
He made the disclosure while speaking to AWE-Media.SL about the Prep Drug at the National Aids Secretariat premises in Dwarzack Farm in Freetown.
"Prep is a new intervention that have been introduced into the national response of HIV and AIDS, adding that it is a prevention intervention or prevention strategy for the vulnerable population of persons at high risk zones where the HIV and AIDS can be easily contacted, especially for persons involved in commercial sex.
"But once you are on prep, your chances of getting the virus reduces by almost 99%," he assured.
And further disclosed that "Sierra Leone has a lot of commercial sex workers, but the consistent and correct use of condom still remain a critical challenge in the country, hence the need for commercial sex workers to be enrolled for Prep.
"We've engaged the sex workers and they told us that their client pays them less when they ask them to use condom, but pay more when they had sex without the use of condom. So there is always a tendency for them to go for unsafe sex," he underscored.
Asked about outreach, he replied: "NAS has also held talks with organizations dealing with commercial sex workers and had been providing them with condom and lubricant which has also recently helped to increase the awareness level letting to most of the sex workers commiting themselves to be placed on Prep."
Meanwhile, the NAS Boss believe commercial sex trade is such a confusing thing in Sierra Leone stating that there are people that are sex workers, but one does not easily get to know that they are exchanging sex for money and that is because these sex workers do not have a network of sex workers, as is the case for other countries.
"Prep Drug is free of cost for those that have enrolled for it. And for others wishing to be enrolled for the drug, some critetia have been set which they must meet, key among the criteria is that beneficiaries must have tested negative of the virus.
"Prep is like a multivitamin that was introduced last year which you take every day and as long as you are taking it, your chances of contracting HIV reduces by almost 99%.
"Since the introduction of the drug last year, much progress has been made in terms of raising awareness about it as well as distribution. “We had earlier had a target of putting 800 sex workers on prep, but we were able to put over 1,300 sex workers on prep,” he expalined.
Moving forward, Sesay said plans are underway to extend Prep to discorded couple (one couple is positive and the other negative) as well as what he referred to as the key population such as men who have sex with men, so that Prep should not just be for female sex workers and that a large consignment of the drug has recently landed and will add to the one that is already there, revealed that such support is coming from PEPFAR, but noted that they started the distribution of Prep in partnership with ICAB, adding that another company has taken over ICAB.
On Prep availability, he said "there is yet any plan to place Prep in drug stores nationwide but has to go through government supply chain.
"We may consider non commercial sex workers and those that are yet married but are actively engaged in the act of having unsafe sex to be enrolled for Prep.
One year now on since the prep drug was introduced in Sierra Leone, have there been any casualty? Sesay replied: "No there has been no side effect not even a discovery about a casualty from those that are currently on the drug.
"We are but hopeful that after a few years a study will be done to ascertain same since there is no medication in the world that has not got a side effect but has so far called on those that are yet put on Prep to show up and adhere to it's medical procedure. Prep is like an Antiroviral, ARV drug and once one is being put on it, he or she must adhere to it's medical directives."
On prep awareness, I also spoke to a commercial sex worker who preferred to be called Lucy. She said she is not knowledgeable about the drug, but however disclosed that she is interested to enroll for it.
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