UNAIDS Press Release - July 19, 2007

The Global Coalition on Women and AIDS, initiated by UNAIDS in 2004, is a unique partnership of UN agencies, civil society groups and networks of women living with HIV who advocate for improved programming for women and girls.

In joining the Coalition, Ms Schoultz will take the partnership forward to help ensure that AIDS strategies better address the needs of women and girls.

"Empowering women must be a priority for us all and strong leadership is needed to achieve that," said Dr Peter Piot, Executive Director of UNAIDS. "I'm delighted that Kristan will be taking up this position as Director of the Global Coalition. Her years of experience and longstanding commitment to AIDS and gender issues will be vital in ensuring that the AIDS response addresses the needs of women, and works much better for them," he added.

Ms Schoultz has been involved in the AIDS response for over 15 years and has held senior posts with UNAIDS as Country Coordinator in Pakistan, Ghana, and Kenya. More recently, she served as the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Botswana.

"Kristan's appointment to this position will enable us to take Coalition's work to the next level," said Deborah Landey, Deputy Executive Director, UNAIDS. "Kristan has been instrumental in assisting governments in Africa and Asia to strengthen their national AIDS programmes. She will be a real asset in moving the agenda forward for women," she added.

Ms Schoultz has been a strong advocate for women, notably in Kenya where she brought together a number of organisations to develop a plan to strengthen the AIDS response in the country.

Ms Schoultz, who will be taking up the position in September said, "I'm honoured to be part of this dynamic effort. There is still a lot of work to be done to secure women's rights, give women a seat at the table, and tailor AIDS responses to really work for women. There is so much that can be accomplished if we combine efforts and work together -- I'm looking forward to being a part of that process."

Contact

Sophie Barton-Knott | UNAIDS Geneva | tel. +41 22 791 1697 | bartonknotts@unaids.org

The UNAIDS-led Global Coalition on Women and AIDS was established in 2004 to respond to the increasing feminization of the AIDS epidemic and a growing concern that existing AIDS strategies did not adequately address women's needs. An alliance of civil society groups, networks of women living with HIV, and United Nations agencies, the Coalition works at global and national levels to advocate for improved AIDS programming for women and girls. http://womenandaids.unaids.org/

UNAIDS is an innovative joint venture of the United Nations, bringing together the efforts and resources of the UNAIDS Secretariat and ten UN system organizations to respond to AIDS. The Secretariat headquarters is in Geneva, Switzerland with staff on the ground in more than 80 countries. Coherent action on AIDS by the UN system is coordinated in countries through the UN theme groups, and the joint programmes on AIDS. Cosponsors include UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank. www.unaids.org

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