Ethiopia Hopes to Set World Record for HIV Tests

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — Nov 25, 2014, 1:24 PM ET
Associated Press

Ethiopia is attempting to set a world record for the number of HIV tests carried out in one day.

The country's health officials said Tuesday they hope to break the record this coming weekend in honor of World AIDS Day on Dec. 1. The previous record for number of HIV tests carried out in one day occurred in Argentina in November 2012, when 1,380 people were tested. Ethiopian officials hope to carry out 2,000 tests.

The Ministry of Health said the tests would occur in the country's Gambella region, where 6.5 percent of residents have HIV or AIDS.

Dr. Warren Naamara, who is with UNAIDS, said some 800,000 Ethiopian have been infected with HIV since the outbreak of the disease in the 1980s. A quarter of those infected were children.