TORONTO, Aug 13, 2006 (AFP) - Bill Gates stepped into the spotlight at the International AIDS Conference on Sunday, vowing that the mighty cheque-wielding charity that bears his name would make AIDS its top priority, and with a special focus on women.
Gates and his wife Melinda, who co-chairs the couple's 29 billion dollar foundation, made their first appearance at the global conference, an event that takes place every two years and this year has drawn a record attendance of 21,000 activists, carers, researchers and public-health experts.
At a press conference, the pair gave the lie to those critics who may have been tempted to portray them as dabblers in the now-glamorous theme of AIDS.
Referring to the many trips they have made to AIDS-hit countries in Africa and to India, the couple declared that AIDS was a war and they were in for a long haul.
"AIDS is the top priority of our foundation," said Bill Gates, and called on "all actors, particularly governments, to dig deep and make this a high budget-spending priority."
Four days after pledging an additional half billion dollars to the combat, Gates said that he had no more grants to announce for the time being.
However, more money would be forthcoming to help prevent HIV infection, especially the quest for a microbicide gel that could be used by women, he said.
"We are going to have do a much better job on prevention to stop the spread of HIV," the Microsoft chairman said.
Gates referred to African women who face demands for sexual intercourse from an infected husband, noting that the only means for prevention -- abstinence or a condom -- lay with the man.
"A woman should never need her partner's permission to save her own life," Gates said starkly.
Melinda Gates said: "Today, fewer than one in five people who are at high risk from HIV have access to condoms, clean needles [for intravenous drug use], education and [HIV] testing. That's something that simply needs to change."
She spoke scathingly of stigma, noting that whenever she and her husband travelled to countries in Africa and to India, they were always welcomed with open arms by top officials.
"But when we go out to visit the sex workers, they [the officials] won't go with us, because they don't want to be associated with the disease."
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation began their contributions on AIDS in 2000, with 50 million dollars to prevent, manage and treat the disease in Botswana.
It pledged 500 million dollars last week to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, bringing its commitment to this organisation to 650 million dollars.
In addition, the Foundation has pledged 287 million dollars to speed the development of an HIV vaccine and 60 million dollars to a search for a microbicide.
Bill Gates was rostered as keynote speaker at the opening ceremonies for the six-day 16th International AIDS Conference.
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