Maty N. Toure and Caroline Hope
Bangkok, Thailand
At the XV International Conference on HIV/AIDSThe XV International Conference on HIV/AIDS focused on the theme Access for All. This theme reflected the need for all scientists, community workers and leaders, from the field, the public and private sectors, and all infected and affected groups to have access to all resources developed after 20 years of living with HIV/AIDS.
Although Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest HIV prevalence rates in the world, AIDS is rising rapidly in Asia: in India alone 5 million people are positive. Thailand has a prevalence rate of 1.8% and although it is often cited as a success model in its efforts to curb the rate of the epidemic, the Thai government, as acknowledged by its willingness to host this conference, must renew its fight against the disease to avoid an explosion of HIV cases.
A new aspect of the conference was the inclusion of a program focused on leadership. The Leadership Program highlighted the role of strong leadership in the response to the epidemic. The program involved leaders from a broad array of fields – government and politics, multilateral and international institutions, NGOs, people living with HIV/AIDS, religion, business and industry, media and entertainment. Components of the Leadership Program included plenary presentations on the need for, and potential impact of, greater leadership in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
MatyN.Toure and Conference volunteers
Bangkok, Thailand
Several world leaders attended the conference including U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, Former President of South Africa Nelson Mandela, Sonya Ghandi, a member of the India Congress Party, and President Museveni of Uganda; as well as several U.S. officials such as Randall Tobias, U.S. Global Coordinator on HIV/AIDS, and Dr. Helene Gayle from the Gates Foundation.
About 19,000 delegates from 160 countries attended the conference and there were many calls to action resulting from conference dialogue.
Maty N. Toure, Health Minister of
New Papau Guinea
and other Conference Delegates
In response to public demands for increased funding and as an example of private sector leadership, the Gates Foundation announced a $52 million contribution to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
Access to AIDS medication was also a major issue addressed during the conference. There was an intense debate over the use of brand name drugs vs. generics and hundreds of protesters marched demanding access to generic AIDS medications for all six million people who need them. Each side brought up important points in the discussion and access to treatment is an issue that remains complex and difficult to solve.In the opening ceremony, U.S. Secretary General Kofi Annan placed a strong emphasis on the need to protect and work with vulnerable groups such as women, youth, migrant workers and intravenous drug users. Conference delegates underlined the important role People Living with AIDS (PLWHA) play in the development of AIDS policy and programs on all levels.
Public/private partnerships and the obstacles faced by business were also topics of discussion the conference. Participants came to the following conclusions in regards to the private sector:
- Stigma and discrimination in the workplace must be addressed
- The private sector should work more closely with insurance companies to include ARVs in employee insurance schemes
- Reaching small and medium size enterprises is essential
- PLWHA should play a larger role in workplace policy/program development
