AIDS 2016: Agreement implementation and response key in fight against AIDS
UNAIDS says the implementation of the terms signed by 193 heads of state in the United States last month on the HIV response is critical.
At a high level meeting in New York on the 8th of June global leaders committed through a Political Declaration to double the efforts to end AIDS by 2030. Speaking on the last day of the International AIDS Conference in Durban yesterday, UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director, Jan Beagle, said the future of the AIDS response is about ensuring access to treatment for everyone including key populations.
"The political declaration is forward-looking in many ways. It abandons old language such as abstinence and fidelity and includes elements not included before such as the need to focus on transgender people, prisoners, reproductive rights and gender norms," she said.
Beagle says the emphasis should be on ensuring that resources continue to go towards health services and the HIV response.
"We need to focus on populations and locations at greatest risk and ensure that resources are allocated where they are needed most," Beagle said.
"We urgently need more prevention services for young people and other populations at higher risk," Beagle said," she said.
(Photo: AIDS 2016 official website)