Beijing has ordered all junior high schools to offer six AIDS-prevention classes before the end of this year, city officials said at an HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Meeting this morning.

Senior high schools are required to give four classes on AIDS prevention and universities should arrange one lecture every year, Xinhua news agency reported.

By the end of October, the estimated number of HIV virus carriers and AIDS patients in Beijing had hit 4,659, 53.71 percent higher than a year ago, including 964 locals, 3,524 residents from neighboring provinces and 171 foreigners.

The educational authority should complete AIDS prevention training with all principals and teachers within this year. High schools or vocational middle schools should send AIDS prevention handbooks to each freshman at the beginning of each semester, the report said.

The Beijing government stipulated that before the end of next year, AIDS-related knowledge should be taught to 90 percent of the urban population, 85 percent of the rural population, 90 percent of school students, 70 percent of the floating population and 85 percent of construction workers.

Before the end of next year, all medical institution and clinics should set up display windows for AIDS prevention and control. All hotels and restaurants should prepare condoms in each room.

The report also mentioned AIDS prevention and control should be extensively advertised on buses, trains, airports and other forms of public transportation from next year.

HIV is mainly transmitted through contaminated needles among drug users and couples having unprotected sex, according to the annual update on the AIDS epidemic, which was released by the Beijing Health Bureau. It emphasized that infections among homosexual men was on rise, while more infected cases are being reported in the general population.

(Shanghai Daily November 22, 2007)