CARE Sees Limited Progress and Major Work Ahead to Fight the Global AIDS Pandemic

NEW YORK (June 2, 2006) - CARE welcomed the declaration by global leaders to ensure access to food and nutritional support in the fight against HIV and AIDS, adopted today at the United Nations. But the international humanitarian and development organization called on every government to step up their efforts and close the gap between words and action as soon as they return home.

"The commitment to food support is a landmark for people in the poor communities where we work around the world," said Ephraim Imaya, a Kenyan AIDS expert working with CARE in the United Kingdom. "This is the number one thing people call for, along with access to treatment."

There is compelling evidence that hunger and poverty exacerbate HIV and AIDS in a multitude of ways. They increase the vulnerability to HIV infection by putting people in unsafe situations and weakening their immune systems. "It is increasingly clear that good nutrition delays the onset of AIDS-related illnesses if one is infected. In addition, treatment is less effective without food," added Imaya.

Despite this advance, CARE is disappointed in the review process leading up to today's declaration, especially a lack of transparency in the negotiations that led to weak provisions for accountability.

"There are few if any targets. In addition, at CARE we believe that people living with HIV need to be central in the HIV/AIDS response," said Michelle Munro, HIV director for CARE Canada.

"This HIV/AIDS review session has been clouded by the recognition that little progress has been made in the fight against AIDS since the last meeting in 2001. The fact that governments refrained from setting new targets and watered down important language protecting the rights of vulnerable people, especially women and girls, is a worrying setback," said Millicent Obaso, CARE's HIV/AIDS advisor in East Africa.

"Governments must now make good on their commitment to set ambitious national targets by the end of this year, and African leaders should do this by reaffirming the benchmarks adopted only last month in Abuja," added Obaso. "It's shameful that these targets did not make it into the declaration."

CARE calls on all African governments to live up to these commitments and for leaders from other regions to follow suit.

The next six months will be crucial. The world needs to measure whatever progress is being made in the fight against AIDS. It's the only way to know what works best to prevent new infections, keep people healthy as long as possible after they are infected and mitigate the impact of this crushing epidemic on poor communities.

Countries need to set up processes that fully include both people living with HIV/AIDS and civil society representatives to establish these targets and strengthen measures for their accountability.

"Time is running out," said CARE's Millicent Obaso. "During the three days delegates met in New York, 24,000 people died of AIDS and 48,000 people contracted the deadly virus that causes AIDS."