UNAIDS: millions receiving HIV treatment globally through accelerated and focused response

24 November 2015 – Citing “extraordinary” progress in HIV prevention and response in the last 15 years, a new United Nations report found that many countries are adopting the Fast-Track Strategy developed by the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), which allows more people to receive timely treatment for HIV, in an effort to end AIDS by 2030, as part of the recently adopted Sustainable Development Goals.

“Every five years we have more than doubled the number of people on life-saving treatment. We need to do it just one more time to break the AIDS epidemic and keep it from rebounding,” said the Executive Director of UNAIDS, Michel Sidibé, in a news release.

According to the report titled ‘Focus on location and population: on the Fast-Track to end AIDS by 2030,’ launched ahead of World AIDS Day, more than 50 communities, cities and countries are using innovative approaches to reach more people with comprehensive HIV prevention and treatment services.

It highlighted the need to use better data to map and reach people in the places where the most new HIV infections occur, in order to end AIDS as a public health threat.

Through the report, UNAIDS identified 35 countries that adopted the Fast-Track Strategy, which accounts for 90 per cent of new HIV infections.

UNAIDS said that focusing on location, population and programmes will help in meeting specific targets by 2030, such as averting 21 million AIDS-related deaths, 28 million new HIV infections and 5.9 million new infections among children.

“Today, we have more HIV prevention options than ever before. And with better data, we can become better match makers, finding the right prevention options for the right people,” said Mr Sidibé highlighting efforts made by countries gearing up to double the number of people accessing HIV treatment by 2020.

At present, the report states that an estimated 15.8 million people are receiving HIV treatment or antiretroviral therapy, which is double the number from five years ago, through the Fast-Track Strategy, which uses data to fine-tune the delivery of HIV prevention and treatment services to reach people left behind.

UNAIDS said that the fast-track approach will be instrumental in achieving the ‘90-90-90 treatment target’, which ensures that 90 percent of people living with HIV know their HIV status, 90 per cent of people who know their HIV-positive status are on treatment and 90 per cent of people on treatment have supressed viral loads.

Further, the report found that in 2010, only 7.5 million people received HIV treatment compared to 2.2 million people in 2005 and additionally, at the end of 2014, new HIV infections fell by 35 per cent since the peak in 2000, while AIDS-related deaths fell by 42 per cent since the 2004 peak.

The life-changing benefits of antiretroviral therapy mean that people living with HIV are living longer, healthier lives, which has contributed to an increase in the global number of people living with HIV, UNAIDS said, highlighting the importance of improving immediate access to HIV treatment, once diagnosed.

Additionally, the report highlighted how high-impact HIV prevention and treatment programmes – such as pre-exposure prophylaxis, voluntary medical male circumcision and sexual and reproductive health services – are being successfully implemented in various locations and for different populations, including adolescent girls and young women and their partners, pregnant women living with HIV, sex workers, transgender people, gay men and other men who have sex with men and people who inject drugs.

For example, the report found that Kenya reached more female sex workers with a comprehensive package of HIV services and reduced the number of HIV infections among sex workers through nationwide mapping of the country.

At the same time, the report shows that areas with fewer numbers of people living with HIV and lower HIV prevalence are more likely to have discriminatory attitudes than areas that have more cases of HIV as education and understanding about HIV are usually higher in countries where HIV is more prevalent and where more people are receiving treatment.

Lastly, the report demonstrated how countries can redistribute resources to improve access to HIV prevention and treatment services by adopting the fast-track approach and front-loaded investments, as this aids in closing gaps faster and save resources in order to meet targets by 2020.

“Everyone has the right to a long and healthy life,” Mr Sidibé said. “We must take HIV services to the people who are most affected, and ensure that these services are delivered in a safe, respectful environment with dignity and free from discrimination.”

The UNAIDS report comes just days ahead of World AIDS Day, celebrated around the world on 1 December each year and used to raise awareness, commemorate those who have passed on, and celebrate victories, such as increased access to treatment and prevention services.

On first official visit, Ban hails Costa Rica as ‘model’ for development, peace

30 July 2014 – On his first official visit, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon lauded Costa Rica as a “model country” in sustainable development and protecting human rights.

Speaking to reporters ahead of his address to Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Mr. Ban said that Costa Rica led by example on many international issues including environmental sustainability, and highlighted its clean air and preserved forests. The Central American nation is also a trail blazer in peace and security due to its disarmament policy, he said.

“You are one of the few countries which does not maintain an army. You are one of the few countries in the region where people can freely walk around without feeling any fear of danger or threats,” Mr. Ban added, emphasizing how essential political stability is for development.

“You have also shown strong leadership in meeting the Millennium Development Goals and you have shown your leadership in shaping the future development agenda, post-2015 development agenda for the sustainable future of our world -social, economic and environmental dimensions.”

He welcomed UN efforts on climate change led by a fellow Costa Rican citizen, Christiana Figueres, the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Costa Rica must send a strong and ambitious message during the climate change summit meeting on 23 September.

On other matters, Mr. Ban condemned the attack in Gaza on yet another UN school sheltering thousands of Palestinian families saying that “nothing is more shameful than attacking sleeping children.” At least 16 civilians were killed in that attack. The total human toll in Gaza now stands at almost 1,300 people, and almost 6,000 people have been wounded.

The precise location of this Jabalia Elementary Girls School had been communicated to the Israeli military authorities 17 times - as recently as last night, just a few hours before the attack. Israeli forces were aware of the coordinates and exact locations where these people are being sheltered, Ban said. The UN is currently hosting 140,000 displaced persons in its facilities.

Later in the day, at a joint press conference with Manuel Gonzalez Sanz, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Ban told reporters that he had also met with President Luis Guillermo Solís. The officials discussed security in Central America, the Millennium Development Goals, the post-2015 development agenda, climate change, and many other issues relating to disarmament and peace and security.

“We also discussed the plight of migrants, especially unaccompanied children. Beyond Costa Rica, tens of thousands of Central American children are vulnerable and suffering at the hands of traffickers, said the UN chief, adding: “On this World Day against Trafficking in Persons, I repeat my call on countries of origin, transit and destination to urgently protect the lives and safety of migrant children.”

He went on to laud the Government’s recent efforts to end discrimination and welcomed steps taken to promote intercultural dialogue with indigenous peoples.

“I praise moves towards recognizing the equal rights of all people regardless of ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity or other differences,” said the Secretary-General, adding that he was also pleased to learn that recently, President Solís raised the diversity flag for the first time in the Presidential House.

“I also encourage a stronger push to end violence against women – building on the impressive successes in ensuring their equal participation in decision-making.”

Mr. B also noted that he would meet with indigenous representatives today. “Their full participation in decision-making is essential. The United Nations is working closely with Costa Rica for greater progress,” he added.

UN official highlights positive trends in Africa to protect indigenous people’s rights

23 May 2013 – A United Nations official today stressed that Africa has taken positive steps to protect the rights of indigenous people, adding that the continent must continue making progress and avoid repeating mistakes made by other regions.

“Africa has been consolidating and strengthening the legal framework protecting indigenous people,” Senior Specialist on Indigenous Tribal Peoples’ Issues for the International Labour Organization (ILO), Albert Kwokwo Barume, said at a Headquarters press conference being held in connection with the 12th session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. .

“We have a large number of African countries that supported the UN Declaration [on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples],” he continued, noting countries implementing domestic laws, like Congo has done. In addition, the Central African Republic has become the first African member country of the ILO to ratify the agency’s Convention 169, which is a legally binding treaty which deals specifically with the rights of indigenous and tribal peoples, Mr. Barume said.

Adopted by the General Assembly in September 2007 after more than two decades of debate, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples sets out the individual and collective rights of those peoples, as well as their rights to culture, identity, language, employment, health, education and other issues.

Mr. Barume also noted that the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights has been “playing a leading role on indigenous people’s issues in Africa.” He underlined that the Commission had particularly helped to conceptualize what being ‘indigenous’ means in Africa, something that has been controversial in some countries.

“Today, that concept has a clear, well-defined, and non-controversial understanding,” he said.

Around 2,300 indigenous participants have gathered at UN Headquarters in New York to discuss culture, education and health during the 12th session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. This year, the two-week forum will particularly focus on youth, indigenous groups in Africa and the importance of strengthening ties with international financial institutions.

Mr. Barume said the current session on Africa is an opportunity for African countries to learn from good practices in other regions, as well as an opportunity for them to share their successful experiences with the world.

“We have seen different attempts of trying to educate indigenous children, but indigenous people have the right to make the choices of the education they want to give their children because they have the right to self-determination,” he said. “In that sense, Africa must avoid making the same mistakes that other countries have made in the past.”

Also participating in the forum were the Legal Adviser to the President of the Republic of the Congo, Laurent Tengo and Simon William M’Viboudoulou, Member of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.

Responding to a number of questions, including one on visits of UN Special Rapporteur for Indigenous Peoples’ Rights James Anaya to Africa, in particular to Namibia, Mr. M’Viboudoulou said that, when Mr. Anaya had visited the Republic of Congo, the country had been in the process of establishing its laws on indigenous peoples. The State’s openness to dialogue had helped to improve the situation of its indigenous population, including implementing the Special Rapporteur’s recommendations.

“We all know the problems facing the indigenous people of Namibia”, he said of that particular visit. However, it was important to consider that accepting Mr. Anaya’s visit – and engaging in dialogue on the issue – showed political will on the part of the Namibian Government. He was confident that things would soon change for the San, one of that country’s indigenous groups.

Asked what was being done to educate mainstream populations about the rights of indigenous peoples, Mr. Tengo responded that there was a longstanding belief in many countries that indigenous people were part of the nation, and that there was no reason to take particular measures to protect them. The first challenge was to break away from that thinking.

The second challenge, he continued, was the state of underdevelopment that generated poverty and intolerance. Indigenous peoples lived mostly in poverty, and changing that would require the political courage to take proactive measures. In addition, indigenous peoples themselves needed to “take their destiny in their hands” and defend their own rights, he said.

On the same question, Mr. Barume stressed the need to address historical injustices against African indigenous peoples, in particular with regard to the annexation of land. Acknowledging those injustices was the first step, he underscored, as “you cannot correct a mistake that you do not first recognize”. It was also critical to legally address those wrongdoings, and then to implement laws and educate the mainstream community.

Training of Trainers Course for DPK Staff 2014

‘Indigenous peoples’ must feature in new global development agenda, stress UN experts

21 July 2014 – The new global sustainable development agenda that Members States are currently working on must include specific references to indigenous peoples and the challenges they face, a group of United Nations experts stated today.

“Indigenous peoples face distinct development challenges, and fare worse in terms of social and economic development than non-indigenous sectors of the population in nearly all of the countries they live in,” the experts said in a news release.

“However, they can also contribute significantly to achieving the objectives of sustainable development because of their traditional knowledge systems on natural resource management which have sustained some of the world’s more intact, diverse ecosystems up to the present.”

The experts speaking out on this issue are Dalee Sambo Dorough, the current chair of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues; Albert Deterville, who heads the five-member Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; and Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, the new UN Special Rapporteur on indigenous peoples.

Member States are working on elaborating a set of sustainable development goals that will follow the targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which world leaders have pledged to achieve by 2015.

The MDGs – covering a range of poverty, hunger, health, gender equality, education and environmental indicators – have been the most successful global anti-poverty push in history. Several targets have already been met, such as halving the number of people living in extreme poverty, and it is expected that more targets will be reached by the end of 2015.

The post-2015 development agenda seeks to address any unfinished business of the MDGs and new challenges and complexities facing the world with sustainable development at its core and poverty eradication as its highest priority.

The experts noted with concern that all references to ‘indigenous peoples’ have been deleted in the latest draft document being discussed by the open-ended Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals, even though the term had been included in earlier drafts.

The Working Group, which met last week in New York, is tasked with drafting the sustainable development goals which will be presented to the General Assembly in September.

“Using the term ‘indigenous and local communities’ undermines the gains achieved by indigenous peoples regarding their assertion of their distinct status and identity as peoples and the rights accorded to them under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and other international instruments,” the experts said.

They urged Member States in the open-ended Working Group to listen to the proposals made by indigenous peoples’ representatives and to ensure that the term ‘indigenous peoples’ will be used consistently in the outcome document.

“It has been widely acknowledged that indigenous peoples have not been accorded the attention they deserve in national development processes and efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals,” the experts said.

“The new Sustainable Development Goals present a unique opportunity to remedy these shortcomings and the historical injustices resulting from racism, discrimination and inequalities long suffered by indigenous peoples across the world,” they underscored.

On International Day, Ban says indigenous peoples can be 'powerful agents of progress'

9 August 2014 – Marking the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples today, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said indigenous peoples have a central interest in development and can act as “powerful agents of progress.”

“In order for them to contribute to our common future, we must secure their rights,” said Mr. Ban in his message on the Day, in which he added: “Let us recognize and celebrate the valuable and distinctive identities of indigenous peoples around the world. Let us work even harder to empower them and support their aspirations.”

The International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples is commemorated annually on 9 August in recognition of the first meeting of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations, held in Geneva in 1982.

“Historical injustices have all too often resulted in exclusion and poverty,” Mr. Ban said, adding that power structures continue to create obstacles to indigenous peoples' right to self-determination.

There are an estimated 370 million indigenous people in some 90 countries around the world who constitute 15 per cent of the world's poor and about one third of the world's 900 million extremely poor rural people. Practicing unique traditions, they retain social, cultural, economic and political characteristics that are distinct from those of the dominant societies in which they live.

Yesterday at an event at UN Headquarters in New York to kick off commemoration of the International Day, the President of the General Assembly, John Ashe, said that with the Second International Decade of the World's Indigenous People coming to an end and the World Conference in September 2014, this year celebration carries with it particular significance.

“The historical marginalization of indigenous peoples is still an unfortunate reality in today's world and in many places, daunting obstacles are a part of daily life,” Mr. Ashe said through a statement delivered by his Special Advisor, Crispin Gregoire.

Irina Bokova, head of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) noted that the agency, tasked with protecting cultural diversity, is leading the way with two angles of action – first, to promote the use of indigenous cultures, languages and traditions, and second, to provide knowledge and skills that enable indigenous peoples to participate fully and equally on the national and international stage.

“We are taking this forward also in the context of the post-2015 development agenda. With our partners, we are advocating for an ambitious and comprehensive education goal that provides due respect to local knowledge systems, including those of indigenous peoples,” she said.

The UNESCO chief said the International Day is an opportunity for all to mobilize to bridge the gaps that remain to the fulfilment of indigenous peoples' rights, particularly as the international community shapes a new post-2015 development agenda.

The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2007, recognized their right to self-determination and to freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development. This year's theme, “Bridging the gap: implementing the rights of Indigenous peoples” also marks the 20th anniversary of the celebration, which dates back to 1994.

UN official highlights positive trends in Africa to protect indigenous people’s rights

23 May 2013 – A United Nations official today stressed that Africa has taken positive steps to protect the rights of indigenous people, adding that the continent must continue making progress and avoid repeating mistakes made by other regions.

“Africa has been consolidating and strengthening the legal framework protecting indigenous people,” Senior Specialist on Indigenous Tribal Peoples’ Issues for the International Labour Organization (ILO), Albert Kwokwo Barume, said at a Headquarters press conference being held in connection with the 12th session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. .

“We have a large number of African countries that supported the UN Declaration [on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples],” he continued, noting countries implementing domestic laws, like Congo has done. In addition, the Central African Republic has become the first African member country of the ILO to ratify the agency’s Convention 169, which is a legally binding treaty which deals specifically with the rights of indigenous and tribal peoples, Mr. Barume said.

Adopted by the General Assembly in September 2007 after more than two decades of debate, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples sets out the individual and collective rights of those peoples, as well as their rights to culture, identity, language, employment, health, education and other issues.

Mr. Barume also noted that the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights has been “playing a leading role on indigenous people’s issues in Africa.” He underlined that the Commission had particularly helped to conceptualize what being ‘indigenous’ means in Africa, something that has been controversial in some countries.

“Today, that concept has a clear, well-defined, and non-controversial understanding,” he said.

Around 2,300 indigenous participants have gathered at UN Headquarters in New York to discuss culture, education and health during the 12th session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. This year, the two-week forum will particularly focus on youth, indigenous groups in Africa and the importance of strengthening ties with international financial institutions.

Mr. Barume said the current session on Africa is an opportunity for African countries to learn from good practices in other regions, as well as an opportunity for them to share their successful experiences with the world.

“We have seen different attempts of trying to educate indigenous children, but indigenous people have the right to make the choices of the education they want to give their children because they have the right to self-determination,” he said. “In that sense, Africa must avoid making the same mistakes that other countries have made in the past.”

Also participating in the forum were the Legal Adviser to the President of the Republic of the Congo, Laurent Tengo and Simon William M’Viboudoulou, Member of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.

Responding to a number of questions, including one on visits of UN Special Rapporteur for Indigenous Peoples’ Rights James Anaya to Africa, in particular to Namibia, Mr. M’Viboudoulou said that, when Mr. Anaya had visited the Republic of Congo, the country had been in the process of establishing its laws on indigenous peoples. The State’s openness to dialogue had helped to improve the situation of its indigenous population, including implementing the Special Rapporteur’s recommendations.

“We all know the problems facing the indigenous people of Namibia”, he said of that particular visit. However, it was important to consider that accepting Mr. Anaya’s visit – and engaging in dialogue on the issue – showed political will on the part of the Namibian Government. He was confident that things would soon change for the San, one of that country’s indigenous groups.

Asked what was being done to educate mainstream populations about the rights of indigenous peoples, Mr. Tengo responded that there was a longstanding belief in many countries that indigenous people were part of the nation, and that there was no reason to take particular measures to protect them. The first challenge was to break away from that thinking.

The second challenge, he continued, was the state of underdevelopment that generated poverty and intolerance. Indigenous peoples lived mostly in poverty, and changing that would require the political courage to take proactive measures. In addition, indigenous peoples themselves needed to “take their destiny in their hands” and defend their own rights, he said.

On the same question, Mr. Barume stressed the need to address historical injustices against African indigenous peoples, in particular with regard to the annexation of land. Acknowledging those injustices was the first step, he underscored, as “you cannot correct a mistake that you do not first recognize”. It was also critical to legally address those wrongdoings, and then to implement laws and educate the mainstream community.