Ugandan President to Open 2008 HIV/AIDS Implementers' Meeting in Kampala

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Global and Local HIV Leaders Announced as Plenary Speakers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 28, 2008

Washington, DC – On June 3, H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda, will welcome more than 1,700 HIV/AIDS implementers from around the world at the opening of the 2008 HIV/AIDS Implementers’ Meeting in Kampala, Uganda.

President Museveni will be joined at the opening ceremony by Ambassador Mark Dybul, Coordinator of the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR); Dr. Peter Piot, UNAIDS Executive Director; Dr. Michel Kazatchkine, Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; and Dr. Kevin Moody, International Coordinator and CEO of the Global Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (GNP+).

This year’s conference theme is “Scaling Up Through Partnerships: Overcoming Obstacles to Implementation,” recognizing the rapid expansion of HIV/AIDS programs worldwide. The five-day meeting is being hosted by the Government of Uganda and co-sponsored by PEPFAR; the Global Fund; UNAIDS; UNICEF; the World Bank; the World Health Organization (WHO); and GNP+.

From June 3 to 7, the Implementers’ Meeting will bring together practitioners from Uganda and throughout the world to discuss and share ideas to further strengthen the global response to HIV/AIDS. The plenary speakers will touch on the six themes for the meeting, which cut across all areas of HIV/AIDS programming. Plenary speakers will include:

• For Knowing Your Epidemic and Response: David Wilson, World Bank; and Agnes Binagwaho, National AIDS Control Commission (CNLS) Rwanda.
   
• For Human Capacity Development: Ian Campbell, Interhealth Worldwide and Affirm Facilitation Associates; and Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Minister of Health – Ethiopia.
   
• For Linking People to Resources: Martine Etienne, University of Maryland, Institute of Human Virology; and Cyriaque Yapo Ako, RIP+.
   
• For Coordination and Harmonization: Babatunde Osotimehin, Nigeria’s National Agency for the Control of AIDS; and Michael Sidibe, UNAIDS.
   
• For Integration of Services: Pablo Montoya, Health Alliance International, Mozambique; and Frederick Mulenga Chitangala, Chreso Ministries ART/VCT Center.
   
• For Monitoring and Evaluation for Impact Improvement: Daniel Low-Beer, The Global Fund; and Kevin DeCock, WHO.

Through presentations, dialogue and networking, participants will share information that will directly impact HIV/AIDS programs in the coming years. To learn more and to view the meeting agenda, please visit www.hivimplementers.org.

Media Contacts:
Kristin Pugh (PEPFAR) +1-202-663-2708 or +256 754 037 647; Jon Lidén (The Global Fund) +41 22 791 1723; Sophie Barton-Knott (UNAIDS) +41 22 791 1697; Najwa Mekki, (UNICEF) +1-212-326-7162

Information about the host of the meeting:

The Government of Uganda through the Ministry of Health and the Uganda AIDS Commission (UAC) ensures a focused and harmonized response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic by the Government of Uganda. UAC provides strategic leadership by ensuring effective harmonization of the HIV/AIDS-related activities of the various players within agreed policy and program parameters. For more information about UAC, please visit www.aidsuganda.org/.

Information about the sponsors of the meeting:

The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) employs the most diverse prevention, treatment and care strategy in the world, with an emphasis on transparency and accountability for results. The goals of the Emergency Plan’s first five years include support for treatment for two million HIV-infected people, support for prevention of seven million new infections, and support for care for 10 million people infected or affected by HIV/AIDS. For more information about PEPFAR, please visit www.PEPFAR.gov.

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is a unique global public/private partnership dedicated to attracting and disbursing additional resources to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. This partnership between governments, civil society, the private sector and affected communities represents a new approach to international health financing. The Global Fund works in close collaboration with other bilateral and multilateral organizations to supplement existing efforts dealing with the three diseases. For more information about the Global Fund, please visit www.theglobalfund.org.

UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, is an innovative joint venture of the United Nations, bringing together the efforts and resources of the UNAIDS Secretariat and ten UN system organizations in the AIDS response. The Secretariat headquarters is in Geneva, Switzerland—with staff on the ground in more than 80 countries. Coherent action on AIDS by the UN system is coordinated in countries through UN theme groups, and joint programmes on AIDS. UNAIDS’ Cosponsors include UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank. Visit the UNAIDS website at www.unaids.org.

UNICEF is on the ground in over 150 countries and territories to help children survive and thrive, from early childhood through adolescence. The world’s largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations, and governments. For more information, please visit www.unicef.org.

The World Bank is engaged in the fight against AIDS, which is threatening to reverse the gains of development, to further its mission of fighting poverty. The World Bank provides comprehensive and sustainable financing for AIDS programs worldwide and to date has committed more than US $3.7 billion since 1988. For more information on the World Bank’s response to HIV/AIDS, please visit www.worldbank.org/aids.

The World Health Organization is the directing and coordinating authority on international health work and takes the lead in the United Nations system in the global health sector response to the AIDS epidemic. For more information, please visit www.who.int.

The Global Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (GNP+) is a global network for and by people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV). Its overall aim is to improve the quality of life of PLHIV. The work of GNP+ is guided by the Global Advocacy Agenda, which consists of three key areas: (i) Promoting universal access to HIV/AIDS care, treatment and prevention; (ii) Combating stigma and discrimination; and (iii) Promoting the greater and more meaningful involvement of PLHIV. GNP+ is the only international network representing the diverse voices of all PLHIV. As a network based on emancipation and self-determination, GNP+ nurtured the development of six fully independent regional networks of PLHIV covering Africa (NAP+), Asia (APN+), the Caribbean (CRN+), Europe (GNP+ Europe), Latin America (REDLa+) and North America (GNP+ NA). Elected representatives from these networks form the GNP+ Board. For more information, please visit www.gnpplus.net.