Wau Bishop of the Episcopal Church has urged religious leaders and congregation members to challenge the stigma attached to AIDS and the exclusion of HIV-positive people from their communities.
Bishop Moses Deng Bol told World Council of Churches News that he believes in a Church that encourages forgiveness, reconciliation and peaceful co-existence.He said Government, churches and NGOs are carrying out awareness campaigns aimed at preventing new HIV infections and providing treatment and care for those who are already infected.
Bishop Deng said the response is still limited in big towns as well as rural areas and that majority of people are vulnerable to the disease.
He explained that VCTs, the Voluntary Counselling and Testing centres, are rarely available and known in the country.
Bishop Deng said HIV is considered a generalized epidemic in South Sudan, with a rapid increase in its spread.
He added that more than 128,000 people are living with AIDS in South Sudan.