AFRO-NETS> HIV/AIDS, TB, malaria drugs fund set up for poorest nations

[Christian Labadie <CLabadie@t-online.de>]

HIV/AIDS, TB, malaria drugs fund set up for poorest nations
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Special report: debt relief
Special report: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Aids 

Jane Martinson and Larry Elliott in Washington
Monday April 30, 2001
The Guardian

Leaders of the richest nations yesterday agreed to bankroll a multi-
billion dollar fund for new drugs and vaccines against HIV/Aids, tu-
berculosis and malaria in some of the poorest countries. 

The fund, worth an estimated $3bn-$4bn (?2bn-?2.7bn), will pay for 
drugs and treatments that already exist as well as for research into 
new vaccines. 

Debt campaigners have argued that the richest countries, the World 
Bank and the International Monetary Fund have failed to help poor 
countries increasingly crippled by the spread of such diseases. 

Yesterday's agreement was designed to show that the developed world 
is taking the health crisis seriously. 

There was a heavy police presence outside as politicians and diplo-
mats met in Washington, amid anti-globalisation demonstrations. 

Against the furore over high prices charged by pharmaceutical compa-
nies for drugs to treat HIV/Aids and other deadly viruses, the fund 
will offer an incentive to the companies to carry out research and 
development work for poor consumers. 

The US is understood to have earmarked $1bn for the fund, although 
officials still have to convince some members of the Bush administra-
tion that the infrastructure needed to spend the money is in place. 

Campaign groups welcomed the fund yesterday but warned that more 
should be done to provide debt relief for poor countries struggling 
to pay for healthcare. 

Two leading IMF committees agreed to consider additional debt relief 
for countries in exceptional circumstances. This could be a step to-
wards allowing the cost of dealing with epidemics to be set against 
debt repayments. Sub-Saharan Africa pays $13.5bn in debt repayments 
each year. 

Adrian Lovett, of the campaign group Drop the Debt, said: "Creditors 
have today admitted they will have to take further action on debt be-
cause of emergencies like Aids. The cat is now out of the bag." 

Kofi Annan, the UN secretary-general, has said that between $7bn and 
$10bn is needed to pay for treatment in developing countries. 

The World Bank, which met alongside the IMF at the weekend, expects 
to take charge of distributing the money to drugs companies and poor 
nations. 

James Wolfensohn, the bank's president, has said the need to tackle 
health problems in developing countries is a priority for his organi-
sation. 

Nicholas Stern, its chief economist, said rich countries had to lower 
trade barriers and increase aid if the goal of reducing by half the 
number of people living in extreme poverty was to be met by 2015. 

The bank defines extreme poverty as living on less than $1 a day. Of 
the world's 6bn people, 1.2bn fall into this category. 

Guardian Unlimited (c) Guardian Newspapers Limited 2001 

Source:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Print/0,3858,4177766,00.html

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Reproduced under fair use by
Christian Labadie
mailto:CLabadie@t-online.de

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