He added that most were drug addicts or those living with Chinese spouses in Yunnan or the neighboring Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.

 

In Yunnan, health authorities face increasing difficulties containing HIV/AIDS in border areas due to an increasing number of inbound foreigners every year, as well as other reasons such as armed conflict, particularly in Myanmar, according to the provincial health authority.

 

This has resulted in shortages of talent and funding, making HIV/AIDS control and prevention in border areas a serious issue, it said in a statement.

 

Exit-entry inspection and quarantine authorities in the province conducted more than 128,000 voluntary HIV tests on inbound and outbound travelers between January and October, and detected 1,034 cases of foreigners infected with HIV, according to the provincial health authority.

 

There were 12,000 HIV-positive foreigners reported in Yunnan between 1989 and the end of October, it said. More than 80 percent were from Myanmar, followed by Vietnam and Laos.

 

Males accounted for 62.3 percent of the total number, and 62.1 percent were farmers, followed by those involved in transporting goods by water or road, according to the provincial commission.

 

"We have prioritized border areas for combating HIV/AIDS, and the rising HIV prevalence there has been curbed," the statement said.

 

Incidences of new infections among key groups, such as foreign sailors and cross-border truck drivers, continue to decline, it added.

 

The province will intensify cooperation with neighboring countries in HIV/AIDS control, including cooperation in law enforcement, as well as try to reach more consensus in areas including border control and improving publicity about controlling and preventing infectious diseases and related laws and regulations, the provincial commission said.