Inter Press Service - December 1, 2003
Joyce Mulama

The "3 by 5" campaign kicked off in Nairobi, Kenya, on the occasion of World AIDS Day (Dec. 1). It will focus on five areas, including global leadership in the fight against AIDS, and "sustained country support" for the therapy.

The remaining three categories deal with simplifying the delivery of antiretrovirals (ARV's), ensuring a reliable supply of drugs and equipment to diagnose HIV - and rapidly identifying, and applying, "new knowledge" about the pandemic.

"The 3 by 5 framework is a plan for action by nations, institutions, and all people - including those living with HIV/AIDS," said Jack Chow, Assistant Director-General at the World Health Organisation (WHO) for HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

According to figures released by the WHO and the UN Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), about 40 million people are currently infected with HIV - 95 percent of them in developing countries. About three-quarters of these people, 29 million, live in sub-Saharan Africa.

Additional statistics show that five to six million HIV-positive people in the developing world require ARV's. But, only 400,000 can afford the life-prolonging drugs. Without ARV therapy, up to three million people globally may die from the pandemic this year alone.

The WHO also issued its approval, Monday, for three generic ARV's.

The production of generic drugs to treat AIDS has generated controversy in recent years, with pharmaceutical companies claiming that these medicines will undercut profits from the patented originals. Drug producers say that this will, in turn, prevent them from carrying out research into new medicines.

However, Kenneth Chebet - Director of Kenya's National AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control Programme - has welcomed the WHO's decision. "These new products are an advantage to countries, especially the developing ones which have been hardest hit by HIV/AIDS. (And).they are easy to take," he said.

According to Chebet, 10 percent of HIV-positive Kenyans are in urgent need of ARV treatment. More than two million people in the East African country are infected with the AIDS virus, out of a population of 30 million.

Other health experts at the "3 by 5" launch criticised drug companies for failing to develop ARV's that can be taken by children, saying this was essential if the pandemic was to be comprehensively addressed.

"We need something for children, and that is still a major challenge for pharmaceutical companies," Morten Rostrup, President of Medecins Sans Frontieres, told IPS - adding that further price reductions for ARV's should also be a priority.

According to the WHO, there has been a substantial reduction in the price of ARV's offered to countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Drugs that once cost about 10,000 dollars a year can now be bought for as little as 300 dollars.

However, Rostrup thinks the cost of treatment can go even lower: "It is realistic to have prices reduced to 50 to 70 dollars," he said.

People living with HIV/AIDS maintain there has been much talk about a reduction in the price of ARV's - but not enough action. "Can those concerned stop talking and do something," asked Rowlands Lenya, Executive Director of the Association of People With AIDS in Kenya.

"We should not just offer lip service to people who are suffering. We need to see governments, international agencies and pharmaceutical firms cooperating to give drugs to people who need them," he added.

Kenya's Minister of Health, Charity Ngilu, says her country aims to have 140,000 HIV-positive people on ARV treatment by 2005.

The ministry says that currently, the government is providing free ARV treatment to only 6,000 patients, out of the 270,000 Kenyans who are in urgent need of the drugs. (END/AF/EA/DV/HE/SD/JM/JH/03)

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