At the seminar, co-organised by the Central Committee for Propaganda and Education and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), journalists from several central and local newspapers and a number of television channels discussed a common code of best practices when conducting the HIV/AIDS prevention campaign to stamp out discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS.
The seminar also put forward recommendations for journalists writing news items on the issue.
Vietnam is now home to around 140,000 people with HIV, mainly in the ages between 20 and 39. The rate of HIV infection amongst men is four times higher than in women and the number of men with HIV accounts for over 82 percent of those infected.
Provinces and cities that reported the highest rates of HIV/AIDS at the end of 2008 include Dien Bien, Son La, Hanoi, Thai Nguyen, Yen Bai, Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City and Ba Ria-Vung Tau.
Together providing adequate strong information campaigns and education about HIV/AIDS prevention and control, Vietnam has carried out many programmes of health care and treatment for HIV/AIDS victims.
At present, thousands of people are receiving treatment and have access to free consultations and testing services.