SECRETARY-GENERAL APPEALS TO UNITED NATIONS AGENCIES FOR COORDINATED RESPONSE IN FIGHT AGAINST HIV/AIDS

30 October 1997

Press Release
SG/SM/6371

SECRETARY-GENERAL APPEALS TO UNITED NATIONS AGENCIES FOR COORDINATED RESPONSE IN FIGHT AGAINST HIV/AIDS

19971030 New York Meeting Is Told of Devastating Effects of Global Epidemic, with Increasing Economic and Social Consequences

This is the text of a statement today by Secretary-General Kofi Annan to the tenth annual meeting of the Committee of Co-Sponsoring Organizations of UNAIDS:

HIV/AIDS has touched us all. I have personally witnessed the devastating effects of the epidemic on countries of sub-Saharan Africa: the loss of a young, able-bodied workforce; the pressures on women who care for the sick; and now, infants infected with HIV, children orphaned by AIDS.

The implications for development are ever-more evident in families, communities and countries. Poverty further increases a family's vulnerability to HIV infection.

With the rapid globalization of markets, countries benefit from new economic and trade opportunities. But as people move faster and more frequently, so does the AIDS virus. There is also mounting evidence of the impact on agriculture and food security, on sustainable livelihoods, on public services and on private companies.

We see some hope in new therapies. But due to the exorbitant costs, these are not accessible to most persons in the world -- especially in the developing world.

The devastating global effects of HIV/AIDS, the potential impact on economic and social life in so many countries, the persistent spread of the virus -- all make the fight against HIV and AIDS one of the most important challenges in the world.

The fight requires the organizations of the United Nations system to join together and pool their resources for a coordinated response. In establishing the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS under its aegis,

the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC) had two important objectives -- to make the best use of United Nations resources through a coordinated response; and to address the many different and multisectoral dimensions of the epidemic. This programme was the first instance of all the relevant organizations in the United Nations system committing themselves to pooling their resources into a fully fledged joint programme and to acting jointly at the country level, at the regional level, at the global level.

The Programme has now been in existence for almost two years. I know that there have been important landmarks and successes, to which each of you has contributed. Excellent examples of country-level coordination are beginning to emerge. In China, the United Nations system has cooperated on developing an HIV/AIDS programme framework which reflects national needs. It is used by the Government as a basis for mobilizing resources and coordinating inputs, including from other donors. In Mexico, Pakistan and South Africa, the United Nations organizations have pooled financial resources to support HIV/AIDS-related coordination efforts. There is also evidence of creative partnerships with civil society, including with persons infected and affected by HIV. The private sector is directing its energies towards the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Much remains to be done. The Joint Programme is still young. It is not easy for organizations that work largely alone in programming their resources and budgets to adjust to the requirements of operating a truly joint programme. The lessons learned will be vital in our larger effort to achieve greater unity of purpose, coherence of action and flexibility of response within the United Nations system.

I expect the UNAIDS experience to show us how to reap the full benefits of a genuinely collective effort which will be greater than the sum of its parts. We cannot afford to fail. The issue addressed by the programme is too crucial, the experiment it represents in inter-agency coordination too important.

The serious developmental impact of HIV/AIDS is compelling governments to pay serious attention. Many developing countries, particularly in Africa, accord high priority to the fight against the epidemic. But their national efforts are constrained by lack of adequate resources. This constraint must be addressed. The United Nations system has a special responsibility to create a greater awareness among all those who can help mobilize resources.

This is an issue which is of particular interest to me. Even before the Economic and Social Council asked me to play a greater advocacy role in the fight against HIV/AIDS, I had raised it on various occasions. I will continue to do so. I have also directed the United Nations Secretariat to research and analyse the economic, social and demographic impacts of the epidemic and

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reflect the results in its reports and studies on a more regular and systematic basis.

I shall be pleased to bring to the attention of the ACC tomorrow the Joint Statement on HIV/AIDS that your Committee is expected to adopt. All parts of the United Nations system -- beyond the co-sponsors -- must be ready to take action. Please consider these words today as a call to arms, directed to us all.

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