The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) welcomes the appointment of Elizabeth Mataka as the new Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for HIV/AIDS in Africa.

Welcoming the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s commitment and personal pledge that the United Nations will continue to prioritize the response to AIDS, the Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) emphasized the critical need to build leadership in all sectors to sustain the global AIDS response.

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Despite increased political commitment and funding for the AIDS response, most people who inject drugs are still being denied access to basic HIV prevention and treatment services, said UNAIDS at the 18th Conference on Drug Related Harm in Poland.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) applauds the announcement made today by the Clinton Foundation HIV/AIDS Initiative (CHAI) which puts in place new reduced prices for antiretroviral medicines in low-and middle-income countries.

The goal of universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support is a top global priority and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) supports countries’ efforts to ensure access to high quality and affordable medicines.

It is with great sadness that UNAIDS has learned of the death of Mstislav Rostropovich who just a month ago celebrated his 80th birthday.

“Turning to the private sector and to civil society to lead its Board is a real indication of the Global Fund’s commitment to both accountability and social justice. We welcome all efforts in this direction as we all work together to make the money work for people on the ground,” said Dr Peter Piot, Executive Director of UNAIDS.

These encouraging findings were released today in a new report, “Towards universal access: scaling up priority HIV/AIDS interventions in the health sector,” published by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and UNICEF.

The AIDS epidemic: walking the last mile to make the difference , message on World AIDS Day 2006