2030 Target To End AIDS Epidemic

St. Lucia In Line To Achieve Objective.

WILL the AIDS epidemic end by the year 2030 or is this too much of an ambitious plan?

The United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) believes that while this is ambitious it is attainable. World leaders also share the same view and have committed themselves to the elimination of the epidemic by 2030 as part of their Sustainable Development Goals they adopted last September.

Saint Lucia is optimistic that the world could attain that goal by 2030. Towards that end a group of parliamentarians from both sides of the political fence last Friday participated in a special session focussing on what they can do to end the epidemic by 2030.

One of the points noted was the need to strengthen the Public Health Act as this was an important prerequisite for leaving no one behind and in ending the AIDS epidemic.

At the meeting was Dr. Edward Greene, the UN Secretary General Special Envoy for HIV in the Caribbean. He appealed to the MPs to adopt a bipartisan approach in support of the recommendations of the CARICOM Council of Human and Social Development.

Included in the recommendations is the implementation of eight elements of the “Justice for All” road map and seven others to be implemented between now and 2020.

Greene made reference to the medium term targets that identified the enactment of legislation to eliminate stigma and discrimination at the workplace, hospitals, schools and communities and for the inclusion of HIV and AIDS as pre-existing conditions for purposes of health insurance. He also highlighted the need for strengthening the application of those laws penalizing offences involving domestic violence and sexual abuse, particularly of women, adolescents and children.

Michel Sidibe, Executive Director of UNAIDS noted in his World AIDS Day Message on Tuesday that the attainable objective to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030 “represents an unparalleled opportunity to change the course of history forever.”

“Today, we live in fragile communities where inequalities can persist when essential services don’t reach the people in need. To change this dynamic we must quicken the pace of action. We know that strengthening local services to reach key populations will lead to healthier and more resilient societies.

“The good news is that we now have what it takes to break this epidemic and keep it from rebounding – to prevent substantially more new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths and to eliminate HIV-related stigma and discrimination,” he said.

He added that on World AIDS Day, which was Tuesday, countries around the world were implementing the UNAIDS Fast-Track Strategy which is expected to close the gap to essential services faster, meaning that resources can go further to reach more people with life changing results.

“Ending the AIDS epidemic means that adolescent girls and young women have access to education and appropriate HIV and sexual and reproductive health services. It means key populations, such as people who inject drugs and transgender people, have full access to health services delivered with dignity and respect. And it means that every child is born free from HIV, and that they and their mothers not only survive but thrive,” the UNAIDS Executive Directive said.

The UN Secretary General, Ban ki-Moon on Tuesday said that the epidemic can only end if everyone moves forward together.

“One by one people stood up for science, human rights and the empowerment of all those living with HIV. And this is how we will end the epidemic: by moving forward together. The window of opportunity to act is closing. That is why I am calling for a fast-track approach to front-load investments and close the gap between needs and services. To break the epidemic and prevent it from rebounding, we must act on all fronts. Reaching the fast-track targets will prevent new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths while eliminating HIV-related stigma and discrimination,” Moon said.

Alvina Reynolds, Saint Lucia’s Health Minister noted that Saint Lucia was well in line with the 2030 objective, explaining that Saint Lucia was one of seven Caribbean countries in line to be certified as having eliminated mother to child transmission of HIV; that Saint Lucia, over the past decade had witnessed over 50 percent access to affordable treatment; registered a marked reduction of over 60 percent of AIDS-related deaths and showed an overall reduction in new infections by approximately 50 percent.

As added props in their quest to deal an decisive blow to the AIDS epidemic, parliamentarians talked about placing greater emphasis on education and awareness through enhancing age appropriate sexual education for in and out of school youths and others. They also agreed on the necessity for respectful dialogue with stakeholders including the private sector, faith leaders and civil society on approaches to eliminate AIDS related stigma and discrimination against vulnerable groups, especially men having sex with men, sex workers and drug addicts. The group also pledged to lend their voices to the international lobby against the unfair practice of removing access to concessional support for countries like St Lucia, classified as middle/upper income countries.