070807globalnews1

Nairobi: Summit focuses on the impact of AIDS on females

UN Secretary says it is time to ‘make the leap’ forward

Asha–Rose Migiro, United Nations Deputy–Secretary General [DSG], recently called for a more broad–based effort to tackle the impact of HIV/AIDS on women and girls. Efforts must be guided by two principles; accountability and a drive to achieve measurable results, she said.

DSG Migiro told the International Women’s Summit meeting in Nairobi, “The factors that drive the feminisation of AIDS cannot be addressed piecemeal. But to be honest, despite our best intentions, many of our activities remain rooted at project level: we have still to make the leap from project to programme, to achieve truly systemic change.”

In addition steps to bolster education, carry out legal and social reforms, and promote awareness–raising among men, together with change that will free men and boys from cultural stereotypes and expectations are all essential. Anti–retroviral drugs to prevent parent–to–child transmission and microbicides, as they become available, must also be provided, said Migiro.

For further information visit the United Nations website at: www.un.org.

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