(messenger.com.ge) - In the last three years, the Ministry of Labour, Health,and Social Affairs reported 137 deaths from AIDS. Official numbers claim 61 deaths in 2005, up from 55 in 2004 and 21 in 2003.
Some experts think, however, that the actual figures are considerable higher as not all who test positive for HIV/AIDS are officially registered. The AIDS Centre reports 831 registered HIV/AIDS-positive patients in 2005, but unofficial estimates put the tally at more than 3000, according to the newspaper Rezonansi, reports Trend.
The first recorded case of HIV/AIDS in Georgia was in 1989. Since then, 184 people have officially died from AIDS. In Tbilisi, there have been 316 cases of infection reported; in Samegrelo, 139, 125 in Adjara, and 84 in Imereti.
In 2005, the national budget allocated GEL 290 000 for epidemiological testing, and GEL 600 000 for a blood testing programme. This year, GEL 1.2 million from the budget is dedicated for those purposes.