Kenya's universities have stepped up efforts to combat the spread of HIV-Aids on campuses. Realising the virus threatens the goals of university education, institutions have incorporated HIV-Aids learning as a core unit in academic programmes or in extra-curricular activities.

A workshop titled "Universities HIV and AIDS Programme Review and Planning" was held at the Kenya School of Monetary Studies in Nairobi from 10-13 November, attended by the heads of Sub-AIDS Control Units from 44 universities and constituent colleges.

It came as new data indicated that Kenya's national HIV prevalence rate had declined from around 13% to about 7%.

At the opening of the workshop Professor Everret Standa, Secretary of the Commission of Higher Education, said he regretted that HIV-Aids continued to rob the country of its great resource of highly educated and talented professionals.

"It is generally accepted that university students in particular and the university community in general represent high risk groups as far as infection by HIV is concerned. Thus universities are in enormous need of increased awareness and knowledge about HIV-Aids," he said.

"It is statistically likely that 90% of university students are HIV free and they must be vigorously alerted to the necessity to protect their status."

Standa said that to support universities' efforts, the commission had obtained funding from Kenya's National AIDS Control Council. The funds were disbursed to universities for activities such as information, education and communication, peer education, voluntary counselling and testing, and the development and publication of workplace policies.

The commission had financed some student initiatives through professional student organisations or groups or university governing councils, he added. For example, a university staff organisation was funded to train selected institutions on mainstreaming HIV-Aids into the curriculum and university activities.

It also continued to partner with non-governmental organisations and Unesco in implementing HIV prevention activities in the university sector, Standa said.

"It is my belief that the real solution to the spread of HIV lies with each and every one of us. As a university sector let us face it academically and programmatically," said the CHE boss.

Kenyatta University's Callistus Ogol of the AIDS Control Unit called for mobilisation through advocacy of higher education leaders and managers in Africa to tackle the threat of HIV-Aids on campuses.

Ogol also suggested that universities integrate HIV-Aids in the curriculum to produce graduates who are competent to deal with the virus.

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