Gambia: An unexpected result of a herbal HIV 'cure'
President Yahya Jammeh's traditional herbal treatment for HIV has had an unanticipated side-effect, say HIV experts in the country - rather than pulling people towards a herbal cure, it has raised the profile of conventional antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) to treat HIV.
Twenty months since President Jammeh claimed to have discovered a cure for AIDS, antiretroviral treatment is on the increase while fewer people are stepping forward to participate in the President's programme, according to an HIV/AIDS expert in the Gambia who asked not to be named.
People who were originally on antiretrovirals then switched to the President's herbal treatment have since returned to ARVs.
“The [President's] treatment has improved the uptake of antiretrovirals by reducing the social stigma of HIV-positive status and by making people realise traditional treatments do not always work,” the source said.
While there is increasing scrutiny of the President's treatment and its impact among HIV/AIDS experts and people with HIV/AIDS in The Gambia, the subject remains highly sensitive and none of those contacted by IRIN wished to be named.
President Jammeh claimed in January 2007 to have discovered a herbal cure for HIV/AIDS, and launched a programme to treat people living with HIV/AIDS (PWLHA) for several months after which they are discharged from his programme. The claim triggered widespread condemnation from the international community, with health experts concerned it would slow the already low uptake of antiretrovirals, the only medically proven therapy for HIV infection.
The ingredients of the President's herbal mixture have been kept secret.
Kevin Peterson, head of the British institute Medical Research Council's (MRC) HIV treatment programme in The Gambia, estimates that on average 2 to 3 percent of Gambians are HIV-positive, and “the overall pattern is a gradual increase.”
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