Note No. 5660

                                                      17 April 2001

Note to Correspondents

SECRETARY-GENERAL TO CALL FOR MAJOR MOBILIZATION IN FIGHT AGAINST AIDS

IN STATEMENT TO AFRICAN SUMMIT IN ABUJA, NIGERIA, 26 APRIL

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan will outline key priorities in the fight against AIDS on 26 April in a statement he will deliver to the African Summit on HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and other related infectious diseases, to be held in Abuja, Nigeria.  He will also call for a major mobilization of political will and resources commensurate with the enormity of the AIDS crisis.

Over the past year, the Secretary-General has been meeting with government and private sector leaders to discuss how to boost the profile and urgency of international action on AIDS.  After a 5 April meeting with the pharmaceutical industry in Amsterdam, he stated that encouraging the active participation of all partners in the fight against AIDS had become his personal priority.

The Secretary-General’s statement in Abuja will be an important contribution to the United Nations Special Session on HIV/AIDS, which will be held on

25 to 27 June 2001 in New York.  The Secretary-General is expected to focus on priority aspects of the epidemic, including prevention, care and treatment, and the key factors to enable a large-scale response.

Mr. Annan is expected to give a press conference at the Organization of African Unity (OAU) Summit in addition to his statement.  The Summit -— convened by the OAU and hosted by the President of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo -— will take place from

24 to 27 April and will be attended by African heads of State, heads of United Nations agencies and private sector executives.  Hands-on AIDS workers and experts will also share their views.

Media accreditation: Contact Dr. M. F. Gboun, Secretariat for the OAU Summit, Abuja, tel. +234 9 413 7361, e-mail: abjsummit@skannet.com

Media contacts:

Manoel de Almeida e Silva, Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General, New York, tel: (+1 212) 963 7160, e-mail: de-almeida-e-silva@un.org

Pragati Pascale, United Nations Department of Public Information, New York

tel: (+1 212) 963 6870, e-mail: pascale@un.org

                                    - 2 -                   Note No. 5660

                                                            17 April 2001

Dominique De Santis, Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS Geneva

tel: (+41 22) 791 4509, e-mail: desantisd@unaids.org

Peter Da Costa, Economic Commission for Africa, Addis Ababa

e-mail: pdacosta@uneca.org or dacosta@igc.org (22-28 April)

On the Internet: www.un.org/News

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