{"id":16046,"date":"2026-05-19T14:24:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T11:24:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/?p=16046"},"modified":"2026-07-03T11:29:02","modified_gmt":"2026-07-03T08:29:02","slug":"candlelight-memorial-day-standing-with-those-who-have-lost-their-loved-ones-to-aids","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/?p=16046","title":{"rendered":"Candlelight Memorial Day: Standing with those who have lost their loved ones to AIDS\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

On 19<\/span>th<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0May 2026,\u00a0Reach\u00a0Out Mbuya Community Health Initiative (ROM)\u00a0joined the Uganda AIDS Commission\u00a0(UAC)\u00a0and other stakeholders to commemorate the\u00a0Candlelight Memorial Day\u00a02026, a solemn occasion dedicated to remembering lives lost to HIV\/AIDS, celebrating progress, and renewing commitments to ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While Uganda has made\u00a0significant progress\u00a0in reducing HIV prevalence and expanding access to treatment, the epidemic\u00a0remains\u00a0a major public health concern. According to the 2025 Uganda HIV\/AIDS Factsheet (based on data up to 31st December 2024), approximately\u00a01,527,238 people\u00a0were living with HIV in Uganda. Of these, about 930,000 were women and 570,000 were men, reflecting a higher burden among women. The country also recorded around 37,000 new HIV infections and approximately 20,000 AIDS-related deaths during the same period, while about\u00a01.3 million people\u00a0were accessing antiretroviral therapy (ART),\u00a0indicating\u00a0continued progress in treatment coverage and improved health outcomes.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

ROM was founded with a strong commitment to curbing the spread of HIV and supporting vulnerable populations to live healthy, dignified, and fulfilling lives.\u00a0As such, ROM\u00a0remains\u00a0committed to supporting national efforts to prevent new HIV infections, improve access to quality healthcare services, and empower communities with the knowledge and tools needed to live healthy and productive lives.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Themed\u00a0\u201cEnding AIDS by 2030: Embracing the role of Women,\u201d<\/i> the memorial brought together government representatives, development partners, civil society organizations, religious and cultural leaders and\u00a0health workers\u00a0as both a moment of remembrance and a call to strengthen collective action in Uganda\u2019s HIV response.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Delivering the keynote address, Ms. Anne Twinomugisha Muhairwe, Deputy Inspector General of Government, emphasized the importance of remembering those who lost their lives to HIV\/AIDS while\u00a0recommitting to\u00a0purposeful action. She called upon Ugandans to restore compassion, integrity, and family values, protect young people, and empower women as critical pillars in the journey towards ending AIDS by 2030.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Minister of the Presidency,\u00a0Hon. Milly Babalanda,\u00a0highlighted Uganda’s remarkable progress in the fight against HIV\/AIDS.\u00a0<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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\u201cNew HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths have significantly declined over the years, while more than 1.4 million Ugandans are accessing life-saving antiretroviral treatment.\u00a0These are attributed to deliberate government commitment, resilient communities, dedicated health workers, civil society organizations, development partners, religious and cultural\u00a0institutions\u00a0and the courage of people living with HIV,\u201d she explained.<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Hon. Babalanda shares a light moment with women as they join singer Joanita Kawalya in a lively song performance, celebrating unity,\u00a0joy\u00a0and community spirit.<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As part of the commemoration, ROM\u00a0participated\u00a0in the exhibition and\u00a0provided\u00a0a range of health education and preventive services. These included HIV testing services, distribution of HIV self-testing kits, information and referrals for Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), blood pressure\u00a0screening\u00a0and awareness on cervical cancer, breast cancer and other\u00a0NCDs.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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The services\u00a0benefited\u00a0students, security personnel and members of the public who attended the event, helping to increase access to health information and promote early health-seeking behavior.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

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As candles were lit in remembrance of those lost to HIV\/AIDS, participants reaffirmed their commitment to stand with those who have lost their loved ones to AIDS and work together to achieve an AIDS-free generation<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On 19th\u00a0\u00a0May 2026,\u00a0Reach\u00a0Out Mbuya Community Health Initiative (ROM)\u00a0joined the Uganda AIDS Commission\u00a0(UAC)\u00a0and other stakeholders to commemorate the\u00a0Candlelight Memorial Day\u00a02026, a solemn occasion dedicated to remembering lives lost to HIV\/AIDS, celebrating progress, and renewing commitments to ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.\u00a0 While Uganda has made\u00a0significant progress\u00a0in reducing HIV prevalence and expanding access […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":16054,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1,3],"tags":[104],"class_list":["post-16046","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-news","tag-blogs"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16046","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16046"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16046\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16058,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16046\/revisions\/16058"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16054"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16046"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16046"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16046"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}