US says to continue help Cambodia to fight HIV/AIDS

PHNOM PENH: The United States said on Monday that it will continue to help Cambodia in fighting against HIV/AIDS.

"The United States looks forward to continuing our support of successes like these and we are committed to furthering efforts that curb the spread of HIV in Cambodia," it said in a statement released here on Monday by its Embassy.

The US is considered as the largest bilateral HIV/AIDS donor in Cambodia, committing US $18 million in 2009 as part of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.

The US helped Cambodia cut its HIV/AIDS prevalence rate by half among the general population and by two thirds among brothel- based sex workers, a remarkable success story in the global fight against the disease.

The US assistance is also helping to provide life-saving antiretroviral medication to more than 31,000 Cambodians living with HIV/AIDS, reaching over 90 percent of those in need, the statement said.

Over the next five years, the United States will place a renewed emphasis on partnering with Cambodia to build the country' s national HIV/AIDS response, it added.