IMPLEMENTING THE CONSENSUS

Final Plenary Session:

Rapporteurs: Prof. Clement Dzidonu and Ms. Wangu Mwangi
Chair: Ms Carol Bellamy, UNICEF Executive Secretary
Panel: Head of UN Agencies and Selected Stakeholders Representatives

1.0 Opening Remarks from the Chair

Ms. Bellamy pointed out that the purpose of the session is to adopt the consensus document. She stressed that discussion should focus on action to be taken after the conference.

She then led the delegates in adopting the consensus document and then facilitated a discussion focusing on implementing the consensus.

She also noted that: there are some meetings coming up which should be used to monitor progress in implementation of these actions —These include:

• Special meeting of Heads of State in Abuja, 25-27 April 2001
• OAU Annual Summit, Lusaka, July 2001
• UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS June 2001
• UN General Assembly Special Session on Children, September 2001

2.0 Presentations by Focus Group/Stakeholders

Statement by PLWA Focus Group

1.  PLWHA must be at the forefront of implementing the Consensus Document.

• At the political level, we undertake to put pressure on Heads of States to be updated and briefed on the results and follow up of ADF. We will also urge all Heads of States to attend Abuja.
• We undertake to put pressure on our governments to declare AIDS a National Disaster in all countries in Africa.
• We will demand PLWHA parliamentary representation in all African countries.

2.  Set up mechanisms to transfer existing skills and best practices from country to country.

• We will undertake exchange and support visits at highest level with maximum media exposure from country to country in order to express our issues and demands.
• We will set up a speakers and skills bureau of PLWHA for the Africa region.
• We demand that the IPAA and Consensus partners support these representatives medically, financially and politically, in order to make sure they can continue their work and facilitate their participation in all the key meetings to be held in 2001, starting from Abuja.

3.  Set up monitoring, documentation and report mechanisms from country to country and in the African region (use one country to monitor another).

• We will prepare a full report and list our demands, reached by regional consensus, for Abuja.
• We will nominate acceptable leaders from amongst the existing networks and bring together representation of these networks to an organising/advisory/pressure committee which will meet not later than February 2001.
• We will initiate an on-line consultation with all PLWHA groups to reach consensus.

Statement by Youth Focus Group

Acknowledge the challenges put forward to the youth group and will require support to do their part.

The Youth Against AIDS Network (YAAN) has been started and needs to be strengthened.

Young people should be supported in debriefing and continuing with the agreed actions.

Proposed a youth forum to plan on further action.

Statement by Gender Focus Group

As a matter of scaling up and moving forward, would like to see: every country should make available treatment to HIV infected pregnant and nursing mothers to prevent new infections (incorporating full drug regimes and counselling)

Governments must ensure the availability of the female condom and access to it.

Concrete steps should be taken to directly involve men (at all levels) in the campaign --- "Men make a difference

At least 50% of preparatory activities leading up to Abuja should involve women

Statement by Religious Focus Group

Religious leaders should be seen as full partners at all levels of government and within the UN system

Moral education should be introduced into the school system

Governments should work with religious leaders in the provision of social services

Religious leaders should set a good example. PLWAs should be treated with acceptance.

Inter-faith Councils should be set up to deal with HIV/AIDS

UNAIDS should set up a religious desk with African representation. With ECA and other agencies, it should convene a meeting to discuss the role of the religious community in fighting HIV/AIDS

Statement by CSO Focus Group

There is a need to focus on the fight against AIDS at the workplace through collaboration with employers unions and governments.

Would like trade unions to be reflected as one of the stakeholders by the ECA in future

Trade unions will be involved in capacity building and training of workers on issues relating to HIV/AIDs

3.0 Statements made by Stakeholders and Partners on How they will be Implementing the Adopted Consensus and Action Plan

Statement by Dr Nafis Sadik, UNFPA

Key Comments:

Our most potent weapon is prevention of HIV/AIDS – we don’t want more new infections. UNFPA will support and encourage action and dialogue.

The importance of reproductive and sexual health awareness messages for all, particularly young people.

Need to reform health care services to become more responsive to young people’s needs (through including them in planning and implementation of health programmes)

The status of women is crucial. Political leaders can help expose gender inequity, deconstructing myths of masculinity and discouraging harmful traditional practices

What UNFPA will do:

Will continue to address HIV/AIDS issues through:

• Advocacy at all levels
• Attention to adolescents and young people as a priority target group
• Scaling up HIV/AIDS assistance programmes and increasing capacity for delivering these services
• The supply of male and female condoms and social marketing and institutional support
• Increasing staff resources within the agency. 75% of UNFPA resources are spent on reproductive health programmes, including HIV/AIDS

Dr Nafis Sadik made an observation to the effect that: countries should divert some of their resources spent on the military to combat HIV/AIDS

Statement by Dr. Ibrahim Samba, WHO

Will increase the technical staff numbers at country and international level to support programmes for HIV/AIDS

Will increase funding for programmes using grants – not loans --from various agencies, including the World Bank

Will scale up successful experiences of treatment by traditional healers

Will make sure that all African country offices will get copies of the consensus document

Follow up actions will be presented at Abuja

Statement by Ms Bellamy, UNICEF

We will continue to work on prevention --Schools will remain an important focus.

Will continue work to prevent mother to child transmission

Will continue to work on orphans

Statement by Dr. Peter Piot, UNAIDS

Dr Piot noted that need to work towards a global social mobilization that does not present AIDS only as an African problem. The results of this forum will be crucial in this as it calls on all sectors to work together.

There is a need for scaling-up and decentralization of activities at all levels.

Specific issues for UNAIDS:

Resource mobilization and monitoring

Resource base need to be broaden

Need to clearly articulate the costs

Identify the gaps – a goal for 2001

Look for combinations of resources, both private and public

Improve mechanisms for channeling the funds to the communities where they can make the difference

Assist governments in strengthening their national AIDS bodies and structures

Improve information dissemination – e.g. on drugs

Strong investment in prevention should continue, and there should be a comprehensive approach (not just ARVs).

Need for major institutional behavioural change – making them more AIDS sensitive

Need to address access to care and resource allocation issues

Need to do a better homework in addressing the key issues

In conclusion, Dr. Piot noted that: ADF2000 was not the usual AIDS meeting – it was a comprehensive mix of various stakeholders. The upcoming meetings/summits will provide opportunities to push certain agenda at country level, and a mechanism for accountability of all sectors. He however made the observation that: summits should not consume all our energies.

Statement by the World Bank

The World Bank will be scaling-up its activities in the fight against the HIV/AIDs pandemic in Africa countries

The Bank will join the campaign for affordable treatment for HIV/AIDs patients

Will assist member countries in Africa in the fight against the pandemic and will intensity its HIV/AIDs campaign at all levels.

The World Bank will not make a commitment to providing grants instead of loans to fight the HIV/AIDs pandemic in member countries in Africa.

Statement by Mr. Asane Diop, ILO

There is need to put together, with UNICEF, a programme addressing orphans and migrant workers.

ILO hope to continue to work with various agencies, including WHO

4.0 Comments and Observations from the Floor

Zimbabwe

Happy that traditional healers have been recognized in the Forum and in the final document

Uganda

On the addenda – would have liked to see a pledge on leadership from the Heads of State.

Would like to see addition to 3.7 to include provision of vocational life skills for self-reliase. Drug abuse is not the only problem

There is need for clear references to accountability and transparency. We should have value for money audits targeting those that have received funding

Gabon

Consensus should be looked at as a collaborative work

Need to look at HIV/AIDs drugs price reduction as an economic not a political issue.

Need to look at ways to reduce the cost of production of these drugs --- which could then translate into lowering retail prices. Suggested that this issue should be taken up at Abuja and ECA could play a led role on this.

Swaziland

Traditional healers glad that they are recognized as one of the stakeholders

Efforts will be made to mobilized traditional healers in all African countries to among other things look at ways of moving the process forward in area like training and improving standards of treatment for HIV/AIDs patients. Also a continental network will be set-up which will operate at a focus group level in the various countries.

Tunisia

There is a need for a special focus on South-South cooperation to share experience as part of implementing the Consensus document and the plan of action.

Dr. Jeffrey Sachs, - A Delegate

Put consensus document on the websites of all UN agencies.

G8 should talk on what it will do on financing

World Bank and IMF should make a statement on status on debt and should find ways to convert loans to grants.

Ask World Bank to convert loans into grants

Need more detailed information on AIDS statistics on the global cost – from UNAIDS

Countries should present a progress report on the implementation of the action plan contained in the consensus document at the Abuja meeting.

5.0 Closing Ceremony

• Message form Mr. Nelson Mandela (Video Clip)

Key Comments and Observations:

No efforts should be spared in the fight against HIV/AIDs --- which is causing more deaths in Africa than the sum total of deaths caused by all wars, famines, floods malaria etc on the continent.

We must mobilize all our energies to fight the pandemic.

We need to take bold initiatives to prevent new infections of the youth and to prevent mother-to-child transmission of the disease

Need to focus on resource mobilization, allocations and take other necessary actions until the battle against HIV/AIDs is won

We need to invest in information and life skills development for young people.

Information dissemination are crucial elements in reversing this tide.

We need to look for ways to make HIV/AIDs drugs accessible and affordable

There is a need to address the problem of stigmatization and take actions to provide a caring environment for PLWAs

The challenge is to move from rhetoric to action, and at an unprecedented scale.

"Others will not save us if we do not primarily commit ourselves", he noted.

• An Ethiopian artist presented a gift – an engraved logo of ADF – to Dr. Amoako

• Closing Remarks by Dr. K.Y Amoako, Executive Secretary, UNECA

Thanked all who had participated in the organization of the conference.

He noted that what has made a big difference in this year’s ADF is that the UN agencies have all collaborated and pulled together, particularly at the country level.

Challenged all these agencies to continue to work together in the implementation process. "We all have to do more than we can", he noted.

He singled out the dynamism of participants, particularly the youth, women and PLWA who had shown leadership in the struggle against HIV/AIDS. He urged participants to take on the mission to break the silence and do whatever they can in their professional and personal capacities. As a young Ethiopian girl pleaded; "We need to be respected, to be provided with drugs and all the love we can get."

Dr. Amoako also pointed out that the consensus document can help us get started on our mission. The document he noted is an operational one – a framework for action.

In conclusion, he recalled two slogans that emerged from this forum:

One coined by Dr. Kenneth Kaunda, www --- should stand for: we will win and the other coin by a presenter with Channel O who changed the AIDS acronym to: Africa is Destined to Survive

The meeting closed by singing an anthem led by Ms._____________, a PLWA from the DRC. It is aimed at fighting stigma. Delegates joined hands in singing that they would conquer AIDS