May. 30, 2006 (CWNews.com) - The chancellor of the Ndola diocese in Zambia reports that Church efforts to combat AIDS have produced strong positive results by emphasizing traditional Christian moral principles.

Father Alick Mbanda told officials of Aid to the Church in Need that Catholic agencies are sexual abstinence and marital fidelity, while providing medical help for those already infected with AIDS. "Of late, we have at last begun to see a bit of progress," he said. "The numbers of people infected with HIV have not been going up and, because of the campaign; the numbers are finally coming down."

"Meanwhile, the government has done too little, too late," Father Mbanda observed. The AIDS epidemic has had a devastating effect in Zambia, where over 10% of the country's 11 million people are infected.

Father Mbanda emphasized that Church-administered programs emphasize education and responsible behavior, contrasting them sharply with government-run programs that distribute condoms. That approach, he argued, encourages sexual activity and therefore aggravates the problem.