Newport East
Open Letter on HIV / Aids Campaign 01 December 2007
World Aids Day - 1st December 2007
Open Letter to all constituents campaigning to secure improved services for people living with HIV/AIDS across the globe.
Today on World AIDS Day, I wanted to outline the scale of the global challenge of HIV/AIDS and update you on the UK government's programmes.
As the recent joint UNAIDS-World Health Organisation report shows, there are 33.2 million people living with HIV and AIDS worldwide in 2007. UNAIDS estimates that every day, over 6,800 people become infected with HIV, and over 5,700 people die from AIDS. That's a death from AIDS every 15 seconds.
Sub-Saharan Africa continues to be the region most impacted by HIV/AIDS. AIDS is the leading cause of death in Sub-Saharan Africa. Over two thirds of the new infections that occurred during 2007 were in Sub-Saharan Africa. And an estimated 11.4 million children across the region have been orphaned by AIDS. UNICEF predicts this will rise to 15.7 million by 2010.
Given the scale of this challenge I am proud that this Labour Government has invested so much in HIV and AIDS programmes. The UK is the world's second largest bilateral donor, pledging to spend £1.5 billion on HIV/AIDS programmes in the three years up to 2008. £150 million of this money is targeted on meeting the needs of children affected by AIDS.
The government has also recently reaffirmed its commitment by making an unprecedented long term commitment to 2015 of up to £1 billion to the Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. This represents a 20 per cent increase on our current level of commitment to the Global Fund.
And the UK's aid is having a real impact. By the end of 2006, 2 million people were receiving Antiretroviral Treatment to low and middle income countries. This is figure is an increase of 54 per cent on the previous year. As the second largest donor to HIV and AIDS, the UK contributed significantly to this progress. However, there is still much more to be done to scale up Antiretroviral treatment as this is still only equivalent to 28 per cent of global need.
There has also been significant investment in prevention. For example, since 2001 the UK has also provided 1 billion condoms for use in the developing world. Every second, 15 UK funded condoms are used around the world. And UK aid is having significant impacts in particular countries. Malawi is one example: UK aid has helped stabilise HIV infection levels and double the number of people tested for HIV in the last year alone.
But the UK cannot, of course, meet this challenge on its own. That is why this government has been at the forefront of global efforts to meet this challenge. For example, during the UK Presidency of the G8 an historic package for HIV prevention, treatment and care, with the aim of as close as possible to universal access to treatment for all those who need it by 2010 was agreed.
In addition, the Prime Minister and the International Development Secretary, Douglas Alexander, launched the International Health Partnership in September as part of the renewed global push to meet the Millennium Development Goals. The International Health Partnership aims to improve coordination amongst donors to deliver improved health systems in recipient countries. Strengthening health services is the most sustainable way of improving poor people's lives and addressing the health aspects of HIV and AIDS.
I firmly believe that while we can be proud of this Labour Government's response to HIV/AIDS, there is much more work to do together. We do this from a position of strength. We must all sustain this effort through our campaigning. Please contact me if you have any questions or campaigning ideas.
