Panafrican News Agency - December 18, 2001
Jerome Hule, PANA Correspondent
The bill provides that 750 million dollars be contributed to the Global AIDS Trust Fund being set up by the UN while 485 million dollars is to be contributed through bilateral aid.
About 50 million dollars is to be spent on a pilot programme to help developing countries obtain pharmaceuticals and antiretroviral drugs.
Earlier in May, President George W. Bush announced a US contribution of 200 million dollars to the global AIDS fund. This was beside the 300 million dollars the administration had budgeted for AIDS programmes in the fiscal year that ended last September.
An Associated Press report quoted the Chairman of the House International Relations Committee, Henry Hyde to have remarked that the US has responsibility to "lead the world in confronting one of the most compelling humanitarian and moral challenges facing us today."
The amount approved by the House more than doubles the less than 500 million dollars proposed for AIDS programmes in the foreign aid spending bill being processed through Congress.
House aides were said to have expressed hope that passage of the House bill would encourage law makers considering the foreign aid bill to increase AIDS spending.
But the head of the House Appropriations foreign aid panel, Jim Kolbe said he would not endorse the 750 million dollars for the global AIDS trust still in the formative stage.
The foreign aid bill provides for just 100 million dollars for the trust fund, though Kolbe said it is possible to increase US contribution to it.
The US Senate has not considered the AIDS package but it is believed the House action would impact on its decision on the bill.
There are about 40 million people living with HIV/AIDS, more than 22 million of them in Africa, according to UNAIDS statistics.
011218
PA011259
Copyright © 2001 - Panafrican News Agency. For information about the content or for permission to redistribute, publish or use for broadcast, contact the publisher: The Panafrican News Agency B.P. 4056, Dakar, Senegal. Tel: (221) 824-13-95 Fax: (221) 824-13-90 E-mail: quoiset@sonatel.senet.net.
AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted grants from Boehringer Ingelheim, iMetrikus, Inc., the National Library of Medicine, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2001. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.
Copyright ©1990, 2001. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. Feedback/Contact Us.