Events

Health ministers and representatives of multilateral, bilateral and philanthropic institutions and the private sector gathered on 21 May in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss health financing post-2015 in a meeting organized by the Center for Global Health and Diplomacy.

A wide array of topics, including good governance and accountability within financing for health, official development assistance, the role of the private sector, partnerships and the need to share a common vision, were discussed at the meeting, which was sponsored by the World Bank, the Swedish Government, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and UNAIDS.

Delivering the keynote speech, UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé highlighted the importance of seeing health as an investment, not a cost, and emphasized the need to highlight results and to unite partners with a common vision to deliver results with impact.

Participants stressed the need to empower local governments to address the challenges of health and development in a changing global landscape and the role of technology in optimizing resources.

Despite their economic and cultural diversities, the BRICS countries, an association of five major emerging national economies—Brazil, Russian Federation, India, China and South Africa—are facing similar health-care challenges, including access to health services and medicines, growing health costs, infectious diseases, such as HIV and tuberculosis, and the growing prevalence of non-communicable diseases.

In order to find solutions on how to provide health care to millions of people, in particular the most vulnerable, representatives from BRICS and other low- and middle-income countries met on 19 May in Geneva, on the sidelines of the sixty-seventh World Health Assembly.

The meeting, sponsored by WHO, UNAIDS, UNITAID and UNDP, focused on identifying strategies and initiatives to overcoming the bottlenecks to increasing access to pharmaceutical technologies. Participants analysed ways to sustain treatment programmes and the scaling-up of coverage, ensure competition within the pharmaceutical sector and exceptions to intellectual property rights related to public health concerns.

The BRICS countries have a long history of making use of policy options, such as compulsory licencing to find a better balance in managing intellectual property rights for public health. At the same time, the BRICS countries expressed a strong desire to collaborate to create favourable environments for fostering accessibility and enhancing the affordability of health products in BRICS and other low- and middle-income countries.

Harm Reduction 2010, the 21st International conference organized by the International Harm Reduction Association is taking place in Liverpool, England from 25 – 29 April 2010. Under the theme ‘Harm Reduction: The Next Generation’, the conference has attracted around 1400 delegates from around 80 countries to share knowledge, network and promote evidence-based best practices in the field of reducing harms from drugs and alcohol.

A wide variety of participants attending include front line workers, researchers, policy makers, politicians, people from international organizations, people who use drugs and people working in criminal justice.

UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé delivered a video message at the opening ceremony where he emphasized his call to decriminalize drug users as centerpiece for an effective response to HIV.

He also underscored that in spite of the scientific evidence showing the positive results of harm reduction programmes as well as its policy and political support, there is still a long way to go.

A study recently published in The Lancet found that injecting drug users often have little or no access to evidence-informed comprehensive HIV services. Globally, only two needles and syringes are distributed to injecting drug users per month and only 8 per cent of injecting drug users receives opioid substitution therapy.

Particular attention will be paid during the conference to the growing HIV epidemic in Eastern Europe and Central Asia which is primarily being fuelled by unsafe injecting drug use. According to UNAIDS injecting drug users are those most affected by the epidemic in the region where 1.5 million people were living with HIV in 2008, a two-thirds increase from 2001 in number of new HIV infections. HIV is also spreading to the sexual partners of people who inject drugs.

After a slow start many countries in the region have made a big push for harm reduction. For example Ukraine has the highest HIV infection level in Europe and a third of injecting drug users are living with HIV. But in recent years the HIV epidemic among drug users has stabilized in the country due to a scale-up in needle and syringe exchange and, more recently, drug substitution programs.

Many studies have shown that when harm reduction services reach drug users they reduce needle sharing, and opioid substitution therapy reduces risk taking and deaths. Another large study conducted in more than 100 cities shows that where harm reduction is available, HIV infection rate reduces by nearly 19% and where it is not, it increases by 8%.

Effective harm reduction approaches include access to clean needles, opioid substitution therapy for opiate users, access to antiretroviral therapy and reducing sexual transmission of HIV from drug users to their sexual partners through condom promotion.

The 2010 Harm Reduction conference includes high profile keynote speeches, plenary sessions, symposia, workshops, training events, a film festival, poster exhibitions, exhibition areas, satellite meetings, social and networking events, and the annual IHRA award presentations. Also, a ground breaking report on the global lack of funding for HIV-related harm reduction titled 3 Cents a day is not enough was launched at the conference.

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration at UNAIDS/WHO

The World AIDS Day celebration at UNAIDS/WHO Headquarters in Geneva, was organized by the UN family, missions, NGO's, humanitarian organizations, people living with HIV and faith communities. The lighting and placing of red candles forming a ribbon and the signing of promises onto a commemorative ribbon were two of the activities that took place after the opening remarks by Dr. Peter Piot, Executive Director, UNAIDS and other special guests.

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Nigeria

UNAIDS coordinated the UN support to the WAD ceremony, including exhibition stands with condom promotion and demonstration and drama performances.  UNAIDS and UN staff also participated in the rally of PLHIV to the National Assembly and to the office of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory. 

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in South Africa

 The UNAIDS Country Office in South Africa in partnership with Cricket South Africa uses sport as a platform for promotion of HIV Prevention. The pictures were taken during . UNAIDS and Cricket South Africa decided to use the Standard Bank International Pro20 Cricket Match between South Africa and India played in Johannesburg, South Africa on the 1st of December 2006 to commemorate World AIDS Day.
The Captain of the South Africa Cricket Team – Graeme Smith gave a speech on the impact of HIV in South Africa, the need to support people living with HIV, and the importance of knowing your HIV  status.
Public Service Announcements  (PSAs) from the World AIDS Campaign were also broadcasted during the match (as shown in pictures)

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Panama

UNAIDS RST Office for Latin America in coordination with UNAIDS Panama carried out two visibility events for the commemoration of the WAD. One was carried out in the Miraflores Locks of the Panama Canal and the other at the Tocumen International Airport.

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 World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Papua New Guinea

The World AIDS Day was a symbolic event in Port Moresby used as a platform to promote HIV testing and counseling under the national theme “Stop AIDS: You have the right to know’. The national preparations for the 2006 World AIDS Day were facilitated by the civil society umbrella body PACSO (PNG Alliance of Civil Society Organization) which is supported by UNAIDS-PNG.

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Macedonia

The World AIDS Day in Macedonia was organised jointly by UNAIDS, the Ministry of Health and local NGOs, and took place in a shopping Mall in its capital, Skopje. There were two info-educational stands where young people from local NGOs offered information on AIDS prevention and distributed booklets, condoms and red ribbons to all visitors, while mobile NGO teams circulated throughout the mall attracting people to write massages that were used to create a “Red message Ribbon”.  During the WAD, a photographic exhibition on AIDS, consisting of 40 photographs made by young people, was also inaugurated. 

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Belarus

 UNAIDS supported the Belarusian Youth Festival of Universities “Stop AIDS. Keep the Promise” held in Minsk 1 December 2006. The Youth Festival was organized by all Universities within the National Plan of Actions on the World AIDS Day 2006. Every University contributed to the Festival with their projects on anti-stigma, health behavior and life skills. The Festival was opened by the Vice-Minister of the Ministry of Health.
Another WAD activity sponsored by UNAIDS was the “Leave Positively!” event organized by the NGO of  PLHIV “Positive Movement”. The event scenario  was centered around a concert where participants wrote messages to PLHIV. The exhibition of the Red Bells messages will start a tour among self-support groups of PLHIV all over Belarus.

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Burundi

 The commemoration of the World AIDS Day 2006 in Burundi extended to all 17 provinces of the country. The Burundi Alliance against AIDS (ABS), a network of 140 national associations, mobilized its members across the country to work closely with the provincial governments to organize World AIDS Day events and present their achievements from the past year. Delegations of high government representatives visited all provinces of the country, where communal ceremonies included parades, film screenings, photo exhibits, sports competitions and cultural performances. Delegates from networks of people living with HIV, the National Alliance against AIDS, and Women and Youth groups addressed local audiences. The President of the Republic launched the National Strategic Plan for 2007-2011.

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Lesotho

 The World AIDS Day commemoration in Lesotho was marked by the support of King Letsie III to the national plans to address AIDS in the country. The King also launched the first ever "Know Your Status" campaign during the World AIDS Day commemorations .

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Swaziland

 The UNAIDS Country Office in Swaziland in partnership with the Swaziland Government, the national AIDS coordinating body, as well as several national and international NGOs working in Swaziland commemorated World AIDS Day with a Ten Day Campaign leading up to the climax day on December 1st. During the campaign offices across the country displayed candles with the red ribbon and promises boxes where people were encouraged to make a pledge and keep the promise. On December 1st a march and run were held to commemorate World AIDS Day 2006. The event also featured songs by the traditional women’s regiment (Lutsango), dramas and songs by school children, music, and dance all focused on HIV. There were also information booths by NGOs working on HIV in the country, and mobile testing units in line with the focus on HIV Prevention.

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Thailand

UN agencies and civil society organisations teamed up to organise a World AIDS Day event led by UNESCO and Thai Red Cross. The event, which took place at Lumpini Park and Thai Red Cross Compound in Bangkok on the 1st of December 2006  was billed as the “Condom Chain of Life Festival” and included setting a new Guinness Book of Records mark for the world’s longest chain of condoms intended to raise awareness around HIV prevention. The World AIDS Day commemoration included a parade organized by the Thai Red Cross involving HRH Princess Somsawalee, games, activities and performances around AIDS issues. Tents and pavilions were organized by UN agencies and NGOs working on HIV related issues to disseminate information. 

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Guatemala

To commmemorate The International World AIDS Day 2006, El Día Mundial en la lucha contra el SIDA, the activity of Quilts in the Central Park, in front of Palacio Nacional de la Cultura, Guatemala City, Guatemala, C.A. 

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World AIDS Day 2006 commemoration in Egypt

As part of the Sailing the Nile for the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) project, initiated by the UN and its partners, eight felucca boats, each representing a Goal, sail the Nile to promote action to fulfill the MDGs in Egypt. On December 1^st, the boats stopped in Beni-Suef to promote the 6th MDG, that aims to combat HIV, malaria and other diseases, and to commemorate World AIDS Day. The organised events included HIV education training-of-trainers sessions with youth and the promotion of volunteerism; workshops with religious leaders to spread AIDS awareness messages; and welcome the feluccas with a parade, display of banners, song and dance performances. In addition to the activities planned in Beni-Suef, AIDS awareness campaigns were orchestrated by local organizations in Cairo, Sohag, Qena, Luxor, Aswan, and Assiut, with events ranging from awareness-raising and training-of-trainers to competitive sports and dramatic performances. 

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The Department of Global Health and Socio-epidemiology at Kyoto University has become a ‘UNAIDS Collaborating Centre’, following a signing ceremony between the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the Kyoto University that took place in Japan on October 12th 2006.

As UNAIDS Collaborating Centre, the department will make an important contribution to the global and regional promotion of HIV prevention efforts, using its innovative methodological approach called "socio-epidemiology", which integrates qualitative with quantitative methods, and sociological with epidemiological viewpoints and draws upon considerable experience and accomplishments in researching on sexual behaviours and HIV intervention.

The collaboration with UNAIDS aims to strengthen HIV prevention among people most at risk of HIV infection in developing countries, East Asia and Japan, with a particular emphasis on youth.

To achieve this goal, the collaboration will focus on four key areas:

• Research - supporting policy making by means of facilitating socio-epidemiological research on HIV prevention in developing countries, East Asia and Japan
• Training - Training personnel capable of creating culturally appropriate prevention programmes drawing upon the socio-epidemiological approach.
• Communication - Accumulating the evidence for HIV prevention practice and communicating this worldwide
• Networking - Facilitating HIV prevention networking in East Asia.

The Collaborating Centre will be headed by Dr Masoko Ono-Kihara, a leading socio-epidemiologist and a founder of the ‘Wellbeing of Youth in Social Happiness’ model for HIV prevention among young people.

UNAIDS Executive Director Peter Piot welcomed the collaboration at the ceremony in Kyoto marking the signing of the agreement where he delivered a keynote speech on “25 years of AIDS: tracing the history and looking forwards”.

Dr Piot was visiting Japan to meet with senior officials from the new Japanese administration including Mr Takeshi Iwaya the new Senior Vice Minister in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and with Congressman Mr Keizo Takemi.

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UNAIDS Collaborating Centre is a non-UN entity that has been designated by the UNAIDS Secretariat to carry out specific activities in priority areas of the Secretariat or the response to HIV/AIDS epidemic.  Collaborating Centres have clearly defined deliverables and timelines and contribute significantly to global or regional efforts. 

• Following a consultative process with the UNAIDS Secretariat, the Collaborating Centre functions can include:Promote, support and implement relevant research, and disseminate and utilize the results of such research;
• Provide selected support targeted at strengthening national capacities for an expanded response to HIV/AIDS, especially in developing countries;
• Organise international learning events, policy dialogue, produce or review guidelines and other documents;
• Participate in technical resource networks established by UNAIDS Secretariat for the identification, collection and dissemination of best practices, and provision of technical support.