Eighth Child Dies Of AIDS In Southern Kazakhstan
November 20, 2006
November 20, 2006 -- Officials and nongovernmental groups say an outbreak of AIDS in the the Southern Kazakhstan region has claimed the life of an eighth child.
They say the 5-year-old boy is the most recent to die from the disease and some 80 other children have been tested HIV-positive.
Transfusions of HIV-contaminated blood in children's hospitals are believed to be responsible for the outbreak, which was first reported a few months ago.
Meanwhile, the Kazakh Senate today ratified an agreement on the creation of a Central Asian AIDS control center in Almaty.
The agreement, which must still be signed into law by President Nursultan Nazarbaev, was signed in September. The World Bank and Britain's Department for International Development are the project's two main sponsors.
The future center will be tasked with funding HIV and AIDS prevention and control in Central Asia.
(Kazakhstan Today, Interfax-Kazakhstan)