1 December 2016, UNAIDS — Dear colleagues!
On the occasion of World AIDS Day, 1 December 2016, on behalf of the UNAIDS Regional Office for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, I am pleased to share some important updates on the new UNAIDS global report and key events and initiatives in the HIV response in our region.
This week UNAIDS launched our new global report ‘Get on the Fast-Track: The life-cycle approach to HIV’ showing that countries are getting on the Fast-Track, with an additional one million people accessing treatment globally in just six months (January to June 2016). By June 2016, approximately 18.2 million [16.1 million–19.0 million] people living with HIV had access to the life-saving treatment, including 910 000 children – double the number five years earlier. If these efforts are sustained and increased, the world will be on track to achieve the target of 30 million people on treatment by 2020. Please see the full report here.
On 3 November 2016, Ministries of Health from 12 countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia adopted the Minsk Statement on ‘HIV and Tuberculosis: Treatment for All’, calling for expanded and rapidly scaled-up access to affordable, quality-assured medicines for HIV and TB. Please see more information about the meeting and the adopted Statement here.
The Government of Ukraine has announced that in 2017 it will double funding from the national budget for HIV and TB treatment, and fully finance the national opioid substitution therapy programme for people who inject drugs – a key population in Ukraine that is at higher risk of HIV infection. Please see more information here.
The first National AIDS Conference in Kazakhstan ‘HIV: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow’ was held in Almaty on 12-13 October 2016. Over 170 representatives of government, academia, health sector and civil society groups from different regions of Kazakhstan joined the event and discussed the importance of measures to be taken to put Kazakhstan on the Fast-Track. Please see more information here.
On the occasion of the International Day of Youth, a series of activities were organized by the Youth Foundation of Armenia to raise awareness among young people about healthy lifestyles and HIV prevention. One of the main events was a concert in Yerevan on 17 November 2016, attended by over 10.000 youth. Information about HIV testing and prevention was shared through social videos, leaflets and other materials throughout the day.
In Tajikistan, the Minister of Health called for people to know their HIV status during the first ever public event on HIV prevention in Dushanbe. The event, in support of the ‘Hands up for #HIVprevention’ campaign, united more than 500 representatives of the Government of Tajikistan, health professionals, celebrities and young people. Please see more information here.
In the Russian Federation, the next phase of the national campaign ‘#StopHIVAIDS’ will be launched on 28 November in Moscow, under the leadership of Svetlana Medvedeva’s Foundation for Social and Cultural Initiatives. As part of this campaign, a series of activities will take place across Russia from 28 November to 4 December, including open lectures in schools, vocational schools and universities. The campaign will feature the Russian Minister of Health, Veronika Skvortsova, Minister of Education, Olga Vasilieva, Minister of Communications and Mass Media, Nikolai Nikiforov, the Head of Rospotrebnadzor, Anna Popova, and various non-governmental organizations. Please see more information about the campaign here.
Please join the UNAIDS World AIDS Day Hands Up for #HIVprevention campaign. The campaign is focused on different aspects of HIV prevention, offering space for people to express their views on what they think needs to be done to strengthen HIV prevention efforts. You can upload your photo/video on the special campaign event page on Facebook or Twitter. Thank you for helping us in raising awareness and reaching wider audiences. We encourage you to join the campaign!
I would like to end this letter with a video message by Michel Sidibé, UNAIDS Executive Director on the occasion of World AIDS Day 2016.
Sincerely,
Vinay P. Saldanha
UNAIDS Regional Director for Eastern Europe & Central Asia
