Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2003. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Cresent Societies - 22 September 2003
Speaking tonight to the UN General Assembly special debate on HIV/AIDS, Suarez del Toro will draw attention to the failure to implement the Declaration of Commitment made at the UN Special Session two years ago to invest a minimum of $10 billion by 2005 in the fight against the epidemic.
"Using the most conservative figures on the number of persons living with HIV/AIDS, those $10 billion represent only $250 per person. That's less than $1 a day per person. Is this too high a price to pay to protect human dignity? Is this too much to restore hope to the millions of people affected and living with HIV/AIDS? I am adamant that it is not. We can reach this target easily, if the will and commitment is there."
Governments must "adopt funding mechanisms such as an Equitable Contributions Framework based on a country's GDP in order to assure the long-term stability and sustainability of the Fund. This point is critical as we know that response to the crisis must be sustained over many years to come."
Suarez del Toro is also calling on governments to apply the lessons learned from the Red Cross Red Crescent, which has made the response to HIV/AIDS one of the organization's top priorities and urging them to: "work in partnerships with the Red Cross Red Crescent, civil society, and with persons living with HIV/AIDS, and eliminate stigma and discrimination and legal and policy barriers so that everyone, regardless of their circumstance or situation, has access to prevention, treatment and care programmes".
For further information, or to set up interviews, please contact:
In New York: Encho Gospodinov, Head of New York office Tel: +1 212 338 0161
In Geneva: Denis McClean, Head, Media Service Tel: +41-22-7304 428/ +41-79-2173357 Eva M. Calvo, Press Officer Tel: +41-22-7304 357/ +41-79-2173372
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