Kathmandu, April 2:

The government has launched the first Paediatric HIV and AIDS Treatment Guidelines for Children living with HIV.

Nepal is the fourth country in South Asia to develop national guidelines for children living with HIV, a release issued today by the UN Children’s Fund said.

The guidelines was launched at a programme attended by representatives of the government, UNICEF, WHO, paediatricians and technical experts.

Launching the guidelines, Gillian Mellsop, country representative for UNICEF, Nepal, said, “Children living with HIV are particularly vulnerable. They require specialised approaches that provide required technical skills and drugs to support proper diagnosis, treatment and follow up.”

Dr Sarala Malla, director general of the Department of Health Services said, “The government of Nepal is thankful for the support of all the partners who want to ensure that children living with HIV/AIDS will have access to treatment, care and support.”