Ugandan Minister of Health Jim Muhwezi on Wednesday called on traditional health practitioners to contribute fully in order to improve communities participation in the effective prevention of HIV infection.

Minister Muhwezi made the call in a statement to mark third African traditional medicine day which falls on Wednesday with theme "African Traditional Medicine: Contribution to Preventing HIV."

Muhwezi said this year's theme reflects the declaration of the year 2006 as the year for the acceleration of the prevention of HIV in Africa.

"In Africa, up to 80 percent of the population use traditional medicine to help meet its health care needs," he said, adding that "traditional health practitioners are well integrated in the communities and they are major stakeholders in the health prevention in Uganda and Africa at large."

He said that "the government will use traditional health practitioners to advocate for the prevention of HIV infections."

"The government is in the final stages of developing a national policy on traditional and complementary medicine," he said, pointing out "this policy will be crucial in defining the role of traditional medicine in the national health care delivery systems. "

Meanwhile, Luis Gomes Sambo, the regional director of the World Health Organization (WHO), said in a statement to celebrate the third African traditional medicine day that this year's theme is " in line with the resolution taken by the ministers of health at the 55th session of the WHO Regional Committee, held in Maputo recently, to declare the year 2006 as the year for acceleration of HIV prevention in Africa."

Source: Xinhua