Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2008. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies - June 11, 2008
I will make this contribution to this important debate with that reference in mind.
That acknowledgement spurred the IFRC to take additional steps to increase the reach and effectiveness of the contribution of volunteers.
This has included advocacy directed at donors to appreciate the cost effectiveness of investing in recruitment, training and proper support of volunteers, along with work with government partners to ensure that an enabling volunteer environment maximises their contribution at the national level.
Some academics have lately been asserting that a significant share of HIV funding should be redirected to health sector strengthening.
The debate only arises because HIV advocates have been so effective in pushing donors and governments to deliver on their promises to respond effectively to HIV.
It is truly inspiring that HIV advocates are also demanding a functioning health sector in every country.
To this end the IFRC has collaborated with World Health Organisation to produce eight training modules for training both volunteers and Ministry of Health paid outreach workers around various aspects of prevention, treatment, care and support.
Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies and Ministries of Health have already collaborated successfully in a number of countries to adapt these modules and train staff and volunteers together.
Of particular concern today, however, are initiatives that move us further away from fulfilling the Commitment.
The IFRC is convinced that moves to criminalise transmission of HIV are unnecessary and counterproductive.
All experience and evidence shows that effort should instead be invested in reviewing legislation that feeds stigma and social exclusion, including travel and employment restrictions on People Living with HIV to ensure PLHIV can be effective partners in our response.
Science should be brought to bear, leading to measures such as the utilisation of methodone as an effective treatment for drug addiction.
This has been an important element in IFRC presentations to the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs in recent years, and we have been pleased to see in the Vienna debates that most States and the UN Secretariat share this priority.
Mobilising the power of humanity is at the heart of the IFRC's approach to HIV.
Alongside this, the commitment of all States and National Societies to work "together for humanity", which was launched at the International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent in November 2007.
"Together for Humanity" means, among other things, making use of the comparative advantage of the Red Cross and Red Crescent capacity to undertake direct action at community and family level while also having access to policy makers.
Our Global Alliance on HIV aims by 2010 to double Red Cross and Red Crescent programming in targeted communities, reaching at least 137 million beneficiaries by then.
This means dealing with 10 - 20 % of the client population in some countries, which means that we will be looking to government partners and others for the complementarity which is essential if we are together to make real progress towards the realisation of the promise of Millennium Development Goals.
As this year's World Disasters Report (WDR) being launched on 26 June explains, in the most affected countries in sub-Saharan Africa, where prevalence rates reach 20 per cent, development gains are reversed and life expectancy may be halved.
For specific groups of marginalized people - injecting drug users, sex workers and men who have sex with men - across the world, HIV rates are on the increase.
Yet they often face stigma, criminalization and little, if any, access to HIV prevention and treatment services.
According to this year's WDR, HIV is a challenge to the humanitarian world which must address it as part of its task to improve the lives of vulnerable people and to support them in strengthening their capacities and resilience.
Disasters, man-made and ænatural', exacerbate other drivers of the epidemic and can also aggravate people's vulnerability to infection.
The greatest challenge for humanitarian agencies, and for agencies working for the real drivers of development, is to find the most effective and efficient means to deliver the greatest impact for vulnerable people.
To do this the IFRC has provided a common framework for scale up including standardised outputs, approaches and tracking indicators.
Fifty eight countries are now participating in the Red Cross Red Crescent Global Alliance on HIV. By 2010 the International Federation estimates it will be spending CHF 270 million per year on the HIV response.
Every dollar of this accelerates greater impact through volunteer mobilisation.
In southern Africa alone in 2007, the Red Cross mobilised close to one million hours of volunteer support.
We in the IFRC appreciate the tenacity and dedication of civil society advocacy to keep all partners focussed on the fulfilment of the promise of our Declaration of Commitment.
All of us who are partners of the commitment have to join hands for action and fight on, together for humanity, until we overcome the challenges ahead posed by AIDS.
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