{"id":4772,"date":"2025-07-22T19:24:20","date_gmt":"2025-07-22T19:24:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/govinfohub.go.ug\/?p=4772"},"modified":"2025-07-22T19:25:34","modified_gmt":"2025-07-22T19:25:34","slug":"how-africa-is-uniting-to-eliminate-mother-to-child-transmission-of-hiv-syphilis-and-hepatitis-b-by-2030","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/govinfohub.go.ug\/index.php\/2025\/07\/22\/how-africa-is-uniting-to-eliminate-mother-to-child-transmission-of-hiv-syphilis-and-hepatitis-b-by-2030\/","title":{"rendered":"How Africa Is Uniting to Eliminate Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV, Syphilis, and Hepatitis B by 2030"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Fidel Boy Leon<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Uganda is hosting Africa\u2019s first-ever high-level conference focused on eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B, three diseases that continue to pose severe risks to maternal and child health across the continent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The three-day summit, held under the theme \u201cUnifying Actions, Transforming Futures: Achieving Triple Elimination in Africa by 2030,\u201d has brought together health experts, researchers, policymakers, and international partners in Kampala with one mission: to coordinate a continent-wide response that matches the scale of the challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Triple elimination refers to the coordinated effort to stop the transmission of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding. It is not simply about reducing infections, it\u2019s about halting them altogether in newborns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Achieving this would mark a historic public health milestone, particularly for Africa, where the burden of these infections remains disproportionately high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though significant strides have been made in preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV, progress on syphilis and hepatitis B remains dangerously slow, despite their devastating health and economic impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much of this stems from limited funding, inadequate screening, and a lack of integration within routine antenatal care services. For instance, many health centres focus primarily on HIV testing and prevention during pregnancy but do not consistently screen for syphilis or offer the hepatitis B birth dose vaccine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stigma and low public awareness also play a role, with many expectant mothers being unaware that they carry these infections or of the serious consequences for their unborn children. As a result, while significant progress has been made in reducing new HIV infections amongst infants, syphilis and hepatitis B continue to quietly contribute to stillbirths, neonatal deaths, and long-term health complications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs Africa, and as a global community, we must act with unity, innovation, and purpose to advance maternal and child health and eliminate mother-to-child transmission,\u201d President Yoweri Museveni stated in remarks delivered by Vice President Jessica Alupo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Museveni noted that these three interconnected epidemics are a major burden to public health, transmitted during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding, endangering newborns and undermining health systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mother-to-child transmission (MTCT), also known as vertical transmission, can occur during pregnancy, labour, delivery, or breastfeeding. For HIV, the virus may pass through the placenta, be exposed to maternal blood during delivery, or breastmilk. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Syphilis, a bacterial infection, can cross the placenta at any stage of pregnancy and lead to stillbirth, deformities, or neurological damage in infants. Hepatitis B, a viral infection affecting the liver, is most commonly passed to a newborn during childbirth if the mother is infected. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Uganda\u2019s Minister of Health, Dr. Ruth Aceng shared sobering statistics that over 26 million Africans live with HIV, comprising 65% of the global burden. Syphilis is surging across the continent, with 700,000 congenital cases and 230,000 deaths annually. Meanwhile, 65 million Africans are living with hepatitis B, responsible for 63% of new global infections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Only Botswana and Namibia\u2014two countries on a continent of 54 \u2014 are on track to eliminate mother-to-child transmission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Kampala conference is a rallying point for coordinated continental action. Anchored in the World Health Organisation\u2019s 2030 elimination goals and the African Union\u2019s Agenda 2063, the meeting underscores Africa\u2019s collective commitment to building a healthier, more resilient future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It also comes at a time of heightened urgency, as donor priorities shift and the disease burden grows. Against this backdrop, the conference signals a new era of regional solidarity, where African nations are not just reacting to health challenges, but working together to eliminate them at their root.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIntegration is the way to go now, especially in this era of unprecedented funding challenges,\u201d Aceng emphasised. \u201cWe are already seeing a reduction in support from development partners.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Uganda\u2019s hosting of the summit is symbolic. We have been on the front line of HIV research and treatment for decades. But like many others, it now faces the dual burden of sustaining gains in HIV prevention while scaling up neglected areas like syphilis detection and hepatitis B immunisation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through the Ministry of Health, Uganda is advocating for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n