“We are releasing the figures officially since there is a distorted version of the statistics circulating among people,” Dr. Ziad Al-Memish, deputy minister for preventative medicine, said on Wednesday.

The deputy minister said among the detected cases, 439 were Saudi and the remaining 682 foreigners.

Al-Memish pointed out that inaccurate date may portray a different image of the Kingdom to the outside world and could also have a negative impact on the successful program which is being undertaken to combat the disease in the Kingdom.

In 2009, 481 Saudis and 806 non-Saudis tested positive for the disease (1,287 in total), while in 2008 there were 505 Saudis and 769 expatriates (1,274).

According to the latest data available for 2010, the number of AIDS cases declined by 11 percent compared to the previous year.

“The rate of HIV infections among Saudis is estimated to be two per 10,000, while reports from the Middle East and other neighboring countries reveal that it is one per every 1,000,” he noted.

Although the data indicate a low level of infection in the Kingdom, the official said the MOH would continue its efforts to take effective measures to combat the disease in cooperation with the concerned government and non-governmental agencies in the Kingdom.

He pointed out that the Kingdom since 1986 has been taking all preventive measures to keep the disease away from the Kingdom’s shores.

“AIDS infections through blood transfusions have been totally prevented with the use of modern apparatus. The ministry is also providing counseling and guidance for those patients who have to live with the disease,” Al-Memish said. He added that his department organizes awareness programs regularly in all health regions to tell people of the hazards associated with the disease and ways and means to prevent them.

Brochures are also distributed to disembarking passengers from the three international airports in the Kingdom to tell them about the dangers of HIV infections.

Foreign workers are clinically tested for AIDs before they are given resident permits in the Kingdom. “We keep track of any new infection brought into the Kingdom by foreign workers,” he added.