UNAIDS
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PRESS STATEMENT
World AIDS Day message from UNAIDS Executive Director
1 December 2017
Michel Sidibé
Executive Director of UNAIDS
Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations
Executive Director of UNAIDS
Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations
This World AIDS Day, we are highlighting the importance of
the right to health and the challenges that people living
with and affected by HIV face in fulfilling that right.
The right to health is a fundamental human right—everybody
has the right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical
and mental health, as enshrined in the International Covenant on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights.
The world will not achieve the Sustainable Development Goals—which
include the target of ending AIDS by 2030—without people attaining their right
to health. The right to health is interrelated with a range of other rights,
including the rights to sanitation, food, decent housing, healthy working
conditions and a clean environment.
The right to health means many different things: that no one
person has a greater right to health care than anyone else; that there is
adequate health-care infrastructure; that health-care services are respectful
and non-discriminatory; and that health care must be medically appropriate and
of good quality. But the right to health is more than that—by attaining the
right to health, people’s dreams and promises can be fulfilled.
On every World AIDS Day, we look back to remember our family
members and friends who have died from AIDS-related illnesses and recommit our
solidarity with all who are living with or affected by HIV.
From the beginning, the AIDS response was built on the
fundamental right to health and well-being. The AIDS community advocated for
rights-based systems for health and to accelerate efforts for the world to
understand HIV: how to prevent it and how to treat it.
Too many people—especially those who are the most
marginalized and most affected by HIV—still face challenges in accessing the
health and social services they urgently need. We all must continue to stand
shoulder to shoulder with the people being left behind and demand that no one
is denied their human rights.
This year has seen significant steps on the way to meeting
the 90–90–90 treatment targets towards ending AIDS by 2030. Nearly 21 million
people living with HIV are now on treatment and new HIV infections and
AIDS-related deaths are declining in many parts of the world. But we shouldn’t
be complacent. In eastern Europe and central Asia, new HIV infections have
risen by 60% since 2010 and AIDS-related deaths by 27%. Western and central
Africa is still being left behind. Two out of three people are not accessing
treatment. We cannot have a two-speed approach to ending AIDS.
For all the successes, AIDS is not yet over. But by ensuring
that everyone, everywhere accesses their right to health, it can be.
UNAIDS
The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)
leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV
infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the
efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN
Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and
national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the
Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect
with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube’
Joseph Ana.
Africa Center for Clin Gov Research &
Patient Safety
@ HRI West Africa
Group - HRI WA
Consultants in
Clinical Governance Implementation
Publisher: Health and
Medical Journals
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