SENIOR UN OFFICIALS APPLAUD RWANDAN EFFORTS TO STOP THE SPREAD OF HIV, TB

Senior United Nations officials today praised Rwanda for successfully integrating the treatment of patients suffering from HIV and tuberculosis after witnessing first-hand the delivery of health services in the African nation.

"It is gratifying to be at this clinic, which has intensified TB case finding in people living with HIV through TB screening and transferring confirmed cases to a TB clinic," said the Secretary-General's Special Envoy to Stop TB Jorge Sampaio, referring to a visit to the Socio-Medical Centre in Biryogo.

"In addition patients who enrol at the health centre with tuberculosis are also tested for HIV and those found to be HIV-positive are given integrated care and support," noted Dr. Sampaio, adding that the programme "reflects Rwanda's impressive progress nationwide on coordinating TB and HIV services."

The head of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) spotlighted the progress Rwanda has made in easing the impact of TB and HIV co-infection through better collaboration and the use of innovative diagnostic technology.

"I am pleased to see that Rwanda is leading Africa and the world in taking an integrated approach to dealing with the interlinked epidemics of TB and HIV," said UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé.

"Rwanda's bold leadership is achieving impressive results that show the rest of Africa what can be achieved," said Mr. Sidibé.

On a later visit to Rwanda's National Reference Laboratory in Kigali, Dr. Sampaio and Mr. Sidibé congratulated staff and recognized their critical role in reducing deaths from TB among people living with HIV, while underscoring the need for much greater investment in strengthening laboratory services not least for a faster, simpler and more accurate TB test.

TB diagnosis requires visualization under a microscope of the bacteria, obtained via sputum samples, which cause the disease. But few bacteria are present in the coughed-up phlegm of many HIV sufferers, leading to a missed diagnosis in many cases.

The sensitivity of a TB diagnosis can be improved by incubating the samples to multiply the TB bacteria which can take weeks or months to grow using conventional methods. In an effort to increase speed and accuracy of TB diagnosis, fast liquid culture (MGIT) is slated to be rolled out soon in Rwanda. The National Reference Laboratory is also studying more efficient microscopes and staining techniques to shorten the time-lag in TB diagnosis.

Earlier this week, Mr. Sidibé addressed the 59th session of the World Health Organization's (WHO) Regional Committee for Africa in Kigali, where he stressed the urgent need stop new HIV infections and called for a sea-change approach to prevent sexual transmission of HIV. "Prevention must become our watchword, the banner we raise in this critical stage of the response."
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TOP UN OFFICIAL CALLS ON ASIA-PACIFIC NATIONS TO LEAD ON AIDS RESPONSE

The time has come for countries in Asia and the Pacific to translate their growing economic clout into positive political influence to help set the global AIDS agenda and the response to the epidemic, the head of the United Nations agency dealing with the disease has stated.

Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) told the 9th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific that the world looks to the region and sees what tremendous progress is possible.

"The region has been achieving breathtaking economic growth and social development, especially in the last decade," he noted in a statement delivered by J. V. R. Prasada Rao, Director of the UNAIDS Regional Support Team, to the week-long meeting, which began yesterday in Bali, Indonesia.

He added that the region's economic dynamism is also reflected in the leadership of the AIDS response in many countries, including on addressing the needs of the most marginalized and at-risk populations – men who have sex with men, injecting drug users, and sex workers and their clients.

However, he pointed out that "spectacular economic growth has not been matched by progress in creating the enabling environments and supportive social norms necessary to deliver a future generation free of HIV."

According to a report last year on the global AIDS epidemic, an estimated 5 million people in Asia, and 74,000 in the Pacific, were living with HIV in 2007. In addition, the Independent Commission on AIDS in Asia says that AIDS remains the most likely cause of death and loss of work days among people aged 15 to 44 in the region.

Mr. Sidibé said he continues to receive reports of "senseless, vicious and inhumane" harassment of people living with HIV in the region, as well as harassment of AIDS activists.

"UNAIDS will continue to advocate, both publicly and privately, to repeal laws that undermine our quest for universal access and root out HIV-related stigma and discrimination.

"But real transformation has to come in the hearts and minds of the people," he added. "Courts and parliaments can only create an enabling environment. Societies and communities have to change the social norms to end stigma and discrimination faced by transgender, men who have sex with men, sex workers and injecting drug users."

The Executive Director also stressed the need to reap the "prevention dividend," noting that it is possible today to virtually eliminate mother-to-child transmission just as has been done in Western Europe. "An AIDS-free generation is within our reach – it is a moral imperative."

There is also a strong business case for prevention, he told the gathering, as it generates economic benefits. As pointed out by the AIDS Commission, for every dollar spent on preventing HIV, eight dollars can be saved on treatment costs in the future.

"Prevention has been systematically under-invested," said Mr. Sidibé. "The time has come to boldly ramp up our prevention efforts and ensure investments are better focused on reaching marginalized groups in poor communities."

The Congress, which takes place every two years, has drawn thousands of people together for five days of discussion on issues ranging from mobility and migration, injecting drug use, human rights as well as gender.
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UNAIDS CHIEF WELCOMES PLAN TO SLASH PRICES OF ESSENTIAL MEDICINES

A top United Nations official has hailed agreements reached by the Clinton Foundation with pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Matrix to reduce the prices of antiretroviral drugs for people living with AIDS and tuberculosis (TB).

"The reduction of prices of second line antiretroviral drugs will saves lives," said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). "These agreements will help improve the sustainability of national treatment programmes over the long term."

Second line antiretroviral drugs are necessary when people living with HIV – currently an estimated 33 million people worldwide – fail to respond to standard treatment regimens.

At the end of last year, an estimated 5 per cent of the 4 million people on antiretroviral treatment required second line drugs, according to UNAIDS, which added that the need for these drugs is expected to rise in the coming years.

The agency noted that the agreement with Matrix to make available three second line drugs in a single package will also contribute to the ease of delivery and help increase treatment adherence.

Meanwhile, the agreement with Pfizer will enable people to seek treatment for TB – a leading cause of death for those living with AIDS – without interrupting their second line treatment.

"People living with HIV should not have to choose between TB and AIDS treatment," said Mr Sidibé. "We have to stop people living with HIV from dying of TB."
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CHANGE IN DRUG TREATMENT REDUCES HIV INFECTION IN NEWBORN BABIES – UN-BACKED STUDY

Mother-to-child HIV transmission rates can be dramatically cut with the administration of a cocktail of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs over a longer period of time to pregnant and breastfeeding women, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) announced today.

Newborn babies are over 40 per cent less likely to become infected with the virus if HIV-positive pregnant women take a combination of three ARV drugs from the last trimester of pregnancy until six months into breastfeeding, rather than a short course of drugs that ends at delivery, according to a new study led by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The study – named Kesho Bora, which means "a better future" in Swahili – involved 1,140 women from Burkina Faso, Kenya and South Africa and showed that a significant reduction can be achieved in many pregnant women with a lowered immune cell count.

In many developing countries HIV-positive mothers face a tough choice between breastfeeding their babies and risking the transmission of the virus through their milk, or giving them formula which deprives infants of the natural immunity passed on through breast milk and helps protect against diarrhoea, malnutrition and other potentially deadly diseases.

UNAIDS said in a news release that it was clear that the Kesho Bora research increases the range of treatment options available to mothers living with the virus and offers them hope that, if they so wish, they have a greater chance of breastfeeding their babies without passing on HIV.

The agency added that there is no increased risk to the health of the mother or the infant associated with this triple-ARV regimen, consisting of zidovudine, lamivudine and lopinavir/ritonavir.

"Strengthened services for maternal health, for reproductive health and for paediatric health will mean we can prevent mothers from dying and babies from becoming infected with HIV in Lesotho and around the world," said UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé during a recent visit to Lesotho in Southern Africa.

The initial findings of the three-year study were presented at the 5th International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention, which concluded today in Cape Town, South Africa.

WHO worked on the study in partnership with the French National Agency for Research on AIDS and Viral Hepatitis (ANRS), the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) of the US National Institutes of Health.

Additional funds for the Kesho Bora study were provided by the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership, the Thrasher Foundation, the UK Department for International Development, UNICEF and the Belgian Government.
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NEW UN-BACKED REPORT FINDS DECLINING FUNDING LEVELS FOR HIV VACCINE RESEARCH

A new United Nations-backed report on investment in HIV prevention research in 2008 finds that funding levels for a possible vaccine for the virus have decreased for the first time since investment trends have been tracked.

The report – "Adapting to Realities: Trends in HIV Prevention Research Funding 2000 to 2008" –notes that this trend may have been influenced by shifts in scientific priorities, the global economic downturn and competition for various health issues.

Despite the decrease, the overall trend since 2000 has been of greater investment for experimental biomedical prevention strategies, adds the report, prepared by the HIV Vaccine and Microbicide Resource Tracking Working Group, of which the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) is a member.

It identifies investments of almost $1.2 billion in HIV prevention research in 2008, of which $868 million supported vaccine research and development (R&D), and $244 million supported microbicide R&D.

The United States was once again the leader in funding HIV prevention research, supporting 71 per cent of HIV vaccine R&D and 63 per cent of microbicide R&D in 2008. "A decrease in investment from the US National Institutes of Health contributed to the overall decline of funding for HIV vaccine R&D," states a news release published by UNAIDS on the report.

In addition to the $39 million decline in US investment, there was also a decrease in funding for HIV vaccine research from other countries, including from European governments, Brazil, Canada, India, South Africa and Thailand.

A recent report from UNAIDS and the World Bank warned that the well-being of millions of people could be put at risk as HIV prevention and treatment programmes fall victim to funding cutbacks as a result of the global economic crisis.

It found that eight countries – which together are home to more than 60 per cent of all those receiving AIDS treatment – are already facing shortages of antiretroviral drugs or other disruptions to treatment.

In addition, 34 out of the 71 surveyed countries report that HIV prevention programmes focusing on high-risk groups such as sex workers, injection drug users and men who have sex with men are already feeling the impact of the crisis.

Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS, said research to develop new HIV prevention tools and strategies is essential to prevent new infections, and an HIV vaccine still holds "the greatest hope" to ending the epidemic. "It is vitally important that investments into research for HIV prevention be sustained and increased for as long as it takes to reach those goals."

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UNAIDS WELCOMES FRENCH-SPEAKING BLOC’S COMMITMENT TO COMBAT HIV

Parliamentarians from Francophone countries, which bear a large burden of the global HIV/AIDS epidemic, today reaffirmed their commitment to tackling the disease, in a move welcomed by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

A resolution adopted during the annual gathering of the Parliamentary Assembly of La Francophonie in Paris from 3-6 July sent a strong message that fighting AIDS is given high priority on the agenda of Francophone parliamentarians.

"I am encouraged to see this level of leadership from Francophone countries to the AIDS response," said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. "A strong response is needed to break the trajectory of the epidemic and start building a better future for people affected by HIV," he added.

The resolution adopted by the Assembly called for, among other matters, boosting HIV prevention efforts, especially among groups with higher risk of infection.

It also rejected punitive laws, such as the criminalization of HIV transmission and laws barring marginalized groups from accessing health services.

Access to anti-retroviral drugs must be free to all in need, the resolution added, stressing the need to ensure that the necessary resources are provided for the health-care systems of developing countries in Africa and Asia. The lack of an effective response to poverty will weaken the response to AIDS, it warned.

More than half of all UN Member States hold either full-fledged or observer-status membership of La Francophonie, which signed a cooperation agreement with the UN in October 2006.

TOP UN OFFICIALS URGE CONTINUED AIDS FUNDING AMID ECONOMIC CRISIS

Top United Nations officials today urged countries to maintain and strengthen their commitments to tackle HIV and AIDS in the midst of the global economic downturn, warning that slashing resources now could mean greater costs and suffering in the future.

Addressing a meeting of the General Assembly convened to assess progress in the response to the global epidemic, its President, Miguel D'Escoto, noted that people living with HIV/AIDS have been placed at greater risk as a result of the global financial and economic crisis that is crippling economies around the world.

"As a result of this ongoing crisis, I fear that many governments are resigned to reducing programmes and diminished expectations," he told delegates. "But it is precisely when times are difficult that our true values and the sincerity of our commitment are most clearly evident.

"Even as we see signs of cutbacks in AIDS funding in many countries, we must remind governments and the international community that the world has the resources to mount the kind of AIDS response to which we have committed.

"If we allow cuts now, we will face increased costs and great human suffering in the future," he stated.

In 2006, the Assembly pledged to achieve universal access to comprehensive HIV prevention, treatment, care and support by 2010. A report by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on progress on HIV/AIDS commitments shows that achieving national universal access targets by 2010 will require an estimated annual outlay of $25 billion within two years.

Mr. D'Escoto said that, as the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has pointed out, the amounts needed to achieve this goal represent "a miniscule fraction" of the sums that have been spent this year on economic stimulus measures.

The Secretary-General's report also highlights a number of encouraging developments such as countries establishing clear national targets for universal access, and a continued increase in financing for HIV programmes in low- and middle-income countries, reaching $13.7 billion in 2008.

At the same time, the report says considerable challenges remain, including significant access gaps for key HIV-related services. Also, the pace of new infections continues to outstrip the expansion of treatment programmes, and commitment to HIV prevention remains inadequate.

"Now is not the time to falter," Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the meeting. "The economic crisis should not be an excuse to abandon commitments – it should be an impetus to make the right investments that will yield benefits for generations to come."

Mr. Ban said that a vigorous and effective response to the AIDS epidemic is integrally linked to meeting global commitments to reduce poverty, prevent hunger, lower childhood mortality, and protect the health and well being of women.

"But to achieve the goal of universal access, barriers to progress need to be overcome. Not just in battling the disease, but also in confronting obstacles that society puts in the way," he said, adding that the fight against AIDS also requires attacking "diseases of the human spirit – prejudice, discrimination, stigma."

He called on all governments to review their legal frameworks to ensure compliance with the human rights principles on which a sound AIDS response is based. "This is not solely a medical or scientific challenge. It is a moral challenge, too," he said.

Speaking to reporters after addressing the meeting, the Secretary-General discussed his own efforts to attack prejudice, discrimination and stigma. Among them, he said he met regularly with UN staff who lived with HIV and that he is pushing for all people living with HIV to participate in society without fear of discrimination.

He was joined by UNAIDS chief Michel Sidibé, who commended Mr. Ban's leadership in helping to break the "conspiracy of silence" on stigma, discrimination and criminalization against people living with HIV, particularly among vulnerable groups – homosexuals, sex workers and drug users.

He added that "time is running out," noting that the 2010 deadline for achieving universal access is right around the corner. "Unfortunately, we are far from reaching our goals."

Some 84 countries have reported that they have laws and policies that act as obstacles to effective HIV prevention, treatment, care and support for vulnerable populations, according to UNAIDS.

"Achieving universal access to prevention, treatment, care and support is a human rights imperative. It is essential that the global response to the AIDS epidemic is grounded in human rights and that discrimination and punitive laws against those most affected by HIV are removed," stated Mr. Sidibé.
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TOP UN OFFICIAL URGES END TO MOTHER-TO-CHILD AIDS TRANSMISSION BY 2015

TOP UN OFFICIAL URGES END TO MOTHER-TO-CHILD AIDS TRANSMISSION BY 2015
New York, May 21 2009 2:00PM
The head of the United Nations agency charged with coordinating the fight against HIV/AIDS has called for a virtual elimination of mother-to-child AIDS transmission worldwide by 2015.

"We can prevent mothers from dying and babies from becoming infected with HIV," Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (<"http://www.unaids.org/en/KnowledgeCentre/Resources/PressCentre/PressReleases/2009/20090521_PriorityAreas.asp">UNAIDS), told this week's meeting of the World Health Assembly in Geneva.

According to UNAIDS, evidence shows that timely administration of antiretroviral drugs to HIV-positive pregnant women significantly reduces the risk of HIV transmission to their babies.

"It is a proven, inexpensive, and effective intervention," UNAIDS said in a news release. "Despite this, latest estimates show that in 2007, only 33 per cent of HIV-positive pregnant women received the necessary treatment and only 21 per cent of women in low- and middle-income countries were tested for HIV as part of their antenatal care.

"Progress in this area can only be achieved by integrating programmes which prevent the transmission of HIV from mothers to their children into the broader reproductive health agenda," the agency stressed.

Mr. Sidibé met with more than 80 health ministers during the <"http://www.who.int/mediacentre/events/2009/wha62/en/index.html">World Health Assembly to underscore the commitment of UNAIDS in supporting countries to achieve their universal access goals. He outlined key priority areas in which joint action by the UN could make a significant difference to the AIDS response and a positive contribution to the broader development agenda.

In a related development, UNAIDS and the UN Development Programme (<"http://www.undp.org/">UNDP) have signed a memorandum of understanding with the Forum of Arab and African Parliamentarians for Population and Development to work towards achieving access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support services for all people in the region.

In the agreement, the three parties pledged to strengthen the parliamentarians' role in addressing universal access, including by creating awareness and influencing public opinion, as well as ensuring that legislation protects and promotes human rights and that funds are allocated to the issue.
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SENEGAL: UNAIDS LAUDS RELEASE OF MEN JAILED FOR THEIR SEXUAL ORIENTATION

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) today welcomed the release of nine men, members of a Senegalese AIDS awareness group, who had been imprisoned for their sexual orientation.

The men were arrested last December and sentenced the following month by the Senegalese courts for "acts against nature and the creation of an association of criminals."

UNAIDS, the UN Development Programme (UNDP), civil society organizations, the French Embassy and the Swedish Embassy representing the European Union (EU) mounted a campaign to secure the release of the detainees, who work for an organization called AIDES Senegal.

"Homophobia and criminalization based on a person's sexual orientation is fueling the AIDS epidemic," said UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé. "We urge Senegal to remove such laws that block the AIDS response."

The agency stressed that the rights of men who have sex with men must be protected, with laws prohibiting sexual acts between consenting adults in private being amended to curb stigma and discrimination.

Further, UNAIDS called for the enforcement of anti-discrimination, the provision of legal aid services and the promotion of campaigns that address homophobia.
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TOP UN OFFICIAL CALLS FOR FULLY FUNDING FIGHT AGAINST AIDS, TB AND MALARIA

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria must be fully funded if countries are to achieve the goal of universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support, the head of the United Nations agency tasked with coordinating the AIDS response has stressed.

Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), told donors and partners gathered in the Spanish city of Cáceres for the Mid-Term Review meeting of the Global Fund's Second Voluntary Replenishment process that many countries rely on Fund to finance their national AIDS programmes.

"Countries need predictable financing so that they can focus their efforts on achieving their universal access goals. That is why the Global Fund must be fully funded," he told the meeting, which concludes tomorrow.

The Fund says that donor funding for the period 2008-2010 stands at $9.5 billion – $4 billion short of the expected demand of at least $13.5 billion.

Despite the current global economic downturn, Mr. Sidibé stressed the necessity of investing in delivering HIV services to the millions of people worldwide who are in need.

"We cannot let the economic crisis paralyze us. Stimulus packages and economic adjustments should be made with a human face in mind. A mother should not have to choose between continuing AIDS treatment and feeding her children. We cannot let down the 4 million people on treatment and millions more in need today," he stated.

In a video message to the meeting, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for continued support to the Global Fund, which was established in 2002 by the international community to ensure sufficient funding to combat three deadly diseases.

"The Global Fund is helping countries to set ambitious targets. It is helping them to achieve concrete results. And it is giving affected populations a real voice in programmes and policies that affect them. I urge you to ensure it is fully funded," he said.

The Fund's voluntary replenishment process was established in 2004 to ensure predictable and sustainable funding, and offers an important forum for donors to exchange views and expectations and to enable them to better plan their financial commitments.
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UNAIDS CHIEF VISITS BRAZIL TO PROMOTE AWARENESS OF TB LINK, END PREJUDICE

The head of the United Nations agency charged with coordinating the fight against HIV/AIDS is in Brazil this week promoting awareness of the link between the epidemic and tuberculosis and the necessity to address discrimination in the South American country's response to HIV.

Brazil is home to some 40 per cent of people (730,000) living with HIV in Latin America, the largest epidemic in the region, while the next most significant HIV-positive population lives in Mexico with 200,000 people.

However, AIDS mortality rates were halved between 1996 and 2002 thanks to the country's commitment to providing access to both HIV prevention and treatment services, which has also helped stabilise the epidemic.

"We have to stop people living with HIV from dying of tuberculosis," Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), said at yesterday's launch of a report by the World Health Organization (WHO) on global TB control.

"Universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support must include TB prevention, diagnosis and treatment. When HIV and TB services are combined, they save lives," stressed Mr. Sidibé.

Underscoring a message of solidarity with those affected by HIV and his opposition to laws blocking AIDS services, Mr. Sidibé will meet in Brasília with Government officials, the National Congress Parliamentary group on HIV, as well as civil society actors active in promoting HIV awareness, protecting human rights and ending stigma and discrimination.

One meeting will bring together national level representatives of groups representing people living with HIV, youth, women, and lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders to discuss these issues within the national and local context.

Mr. Sidibé also plans to visit organizations providing vital services to children and young people in Rio de Janeiro as part of his first official trip to Brazil since becoming Executive Director of UNAIDS.
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RATE OF EPIDEMIC’S DECLINE TOO SLOW, SAYS BAN ON WORLD TB DAY

A new United Nations report notes that the percentage of the global population falling ill to tuberculosis is dropping annually, but Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today that the pace of the disease's decline is too slow and that efforts to combat it are "falling short."

In a message marking World TB Day, Mr. Ban said that although strides have been made, the "rate of decline is far too slow," with the disease claiming a life every 20 seconds.

"Millions of people are benefiting from treatment through coordinated national efforts, but millions more are still missing out," he said, cautioning that "unless we accelerate action, the numbers of those falling ill will continue to grow."

The report released today by the UN World Health Organization (WHO) notes that the total number of new cases in 2007 has stabilized, up to 9.27 million from 9.24 million the year before.

Rates reached their peak at 142 cases per 100,000 people in 2004, but have decreased to 137 per 100,000 people in 2007.

The Secretary-General stressed the need to intensify the fight against multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) and extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB), as well as the TB/HIV co-epidemic.

The new WHO study reveals that one-quarter of all TB deaths are HIV-related, twice as many as previous recognized. In 2007, 1.37 million people living with HIV fell ill to TB.

"These findings point to an urgent need to find, prevent and treat tuberculosis in people living with HIV and to test for HIV in all patients in order to provide prevention, treatment and care," said WHO Director-General Margaret Chan, urging countries to step up cooperation to combat both diseases.

There has been a steep climb in testing for HIV among people being treated for TB, especially in Africa, the report notes. In 2004, only 4 per cent of TB patients in the region were tested for HIV, but that has surged to 37 per cent in 2007.

"We have to stop people living with HIV from dying of tuberculosis," said Michel Sidibé, who heads the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), underscoring the need for universal access to HIV prevention and treatment to include TB prevention, diagnosis and care.

"When HIV and TB services are combined, they save lives," the UNAIDS chief said.

In his message today, Mr. Ban welcomed the commitments made by governments, multilateral organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), foundations, the private sector, academia and researchers to halt and reverse the spread of the disease and press ahead with efforts to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), eight anti-poverty targets with a 2015 deadline.

"In this time of economic crisis, we must protect investments in global health, particularly to protect the most vulnerable," he said, calling for partnership and innovation to "prevent disease, save lives and enable communities to thrive."
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TOGOLESE FOOTBALLER JOINS UN ROSTER OF STARS SPOTLIGHTING HIV/AIDS EPIDEMIC

Togolese footballer Emmanuel Adebayor is the latest addition to the United Nations roster of renowned personalities using their star power to raise awareness about the global HIV/AIDS epidemic.

As the newest Goodwill Ambassador for the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the Arsenal star and "African Footballer of the Year" will use his sporting popularity to highlight, among other things, the importance of preventing new infections among young people.

"Sports stars like Emmanuel are excellent role models for young people," said UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé. "I am confident that he will use the same skill and determination he has on the field in teaching young people about how to protect themselves against HIV off the field."

About half of all new HIV infections occur among young people between the ages of 15 and 24, according to UNAIDS, which notes that the key to reversing the epidemic is preventing infections among this age group.

Mr. Adebayor's interest in working on AIDS issues began after seeing the impact of the epidemic in his native Togo.

"Young people are most affected by the epidemic around the world," he said. "Many of these young people aren't aware of HIV and the risk of infection, and don't know how to protect themselves. I hope I can help change this in my new role as UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador."

He joins fellow footballer and UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador Michael Ballack, working together in an HIV awareness campaign, 'On the pitch we compete – off the pitch we are uniting the world against AIDS.'

UNAIDS works with a number of prominent individuals from the arts, science, literature, entertainment, sport and other fields to strengthen awareness on AIDS. They include Princess Stephanie of Monaco, actors Rupert Everett and Naomi Watts, and Salman Ahmad, lead singer and founding member of one South Asia's biggest rock bands, 'Junoon.'
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CONDOMS ESSENTIAL ELEMENT IN FIGHTING AIDS EPIDEMIC – UN

CONDOMS ESSENTIAL ELEMENT IN FIGHTING AIDS EPIDEMIC – UN
New York, Mar 18 2009 2:00PM

With over 7,400 new HIV infections daily, comprehensive approaches – including condom use – are essential to stop the spread of the AIDS epidemic, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) said today, warning that there is no "single magic bullet" for prevention.

"Condoms are an essential part of combination prevention," which also includes access to HIV information and treatment, waiting longer to become sexually active, reducing multiple partners and concurrent relationships, ensuring human rights and reducing stigma, the agency said in a press statement.

"An HIV prevention approach based solely on one element does not work and can hinder the AIDS response," UNAIDS stressed. "There is no single magic bullet for HIV prevention."

It appealed to nations to use a mix of behavioural, biomedical and structural HIV prevention actions to meet anti-disease needs.

Countries must understand the epidemic and tailor their response accordingly, the agency said, calling on nations to use all human rights-grounded approaches that are informed by evidence.

The most recent UNAIDS report on the global scourge shows how significant increases in HIV prevention and treatment efforts are producing results in several countries.

Condom use among young people with multiple partners is gaining momentum in some nations hardest hit by HIV, including Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda and Zambia.

Sub-Saharan Africa is still the most heavily HIV-affected region in the world, with some 22 million people living with the disease, and the region accounting for two-thirds of all people living with HIV and for three-quarters of deaths from AIDS.

Last week, UNAIDS chief Michel Sidibé said that even in the face of the current global economic turmoil, investing in AIDS responses is crucial to prevent 1.3 million deaths in the next two years, highlighting how the agency's top priority is to achieve universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support.

"Universal access means saving lives and restoring dignity to people," Mr. Sidibé told reporters in Geneva.

It encompasses stopping mothers from dying and babies from being infected with the virus; stopping people living with HIV from dying of tuberculosis; and stopping drug users from becoming infected with HIV, he said.

During the financial crisis, "economic adjustments should be made with a human face in mind," he stated, underscoring that a mother should not have to choose between receiving treatment and feeding her children.

Resources for responses to AIDS should be viewed as investments, and not expenditures, to avert 2.6 million new HIV infections and to put nearly 7 million people on a course of treatment, he told journalists at his first press conference since taking office as UNAIDS Executive Director.
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UNIVERSAL ACCESS FOR HIV PREVENTION, CARE TOP PRIORITY, SAYS UN OFFICIAL

UNIVERSAL ACCESS FOR HIV PREVENTION, CARE TOP PRIORITY, SAYS UN OFFICIAL
New York, Mar 13 2009 5:00PM

Even in the face of the current global economic turmoil, investing in AIDS responses is crucial to prevent 1.3 million deaths in the next two years, the head of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) said today, highlighting how the agency's top priority is to achieve universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support.

"Universal access means saving lives and restoring dignity to people," Michel Sidibé, UNAIDS Executive Director, told reporters in Geneva.

It encompasses stopping mothers from dying and babies from being infected with the virus; stopping people living with HIV from dying of tuberculosis; and stopping drug users from becoming infected with HIV, he said.

Universal access also entails curbing legislation that blocks an effective response to AIDS, the official stressed.

Further, it underscores the need to end sexual violence against women and girls and "stopping failing our young people," he said.

During the financial crisis, "economic adjustments should be made with a human face in mind," Mr. Sidibé said, underscoring that a mother should not have to choose between receiving treatment and feeding her children.

Resources for responses to AIDS should be viewed as investments, and not expenditures, to avert 2.6 million new HIV infections and to put nearly 7 million people on a course of treatment, he told journalists at his first press conference since taking office as UNAIDS Executive Director.

Mr. Sidibé, a Malian national with more than 20 years of experience with the UN under his belt, was appointed to his position last December by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
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