AFRO-NETS> Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report:-Tue, 24 Jul 2001

[Cecilia Snyder <csnyder@ccmc.org>]

Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report:-Tue, 24 Jul 2001
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*Conference on Vertical Transmission Begins in Ivory Coast
*Bill and Melinda Gates Awarded for Supporting Vaccine Development
*G8's Pledge of $1.3 Billion to Global AIDS Fund a 'Pittance,'
  Philadelphia Inquirer Says


Global Challenges

Conference on Vertical Transmission Begins in Ivory Coast

A four-day conference addressing the issue of mother-to-child HIV
transmission in Africa began yesterday in the Ivory Coast capital of
Abidjan, Agence France-Presse reports.  Simone Gbagbo, wife of Ivory
Coast President Laurent Gbagbo, said that the conference will allow
the eight participating countries to "share their experiences" on
fighting HIV. Assana Sangare, the Ivory Coast's minister for AIDS,
noted that approximately 12% of pregnant women in Abidjan are HIV-
positive, and Simone Gbagbo called for mandatory HIV testing for "all
women of childbearing age." The Ivory Coast has a population of 15
million people, about one million of whom are HIV-positive (Agence
France-Presse, 7/23).


Media & Society


Bill and Melinda Gates Awarded for Supporting Vaccine Development

Bill and Melinda Gates have received the International Union of Immu-
nological Societies' award for vaccine development support, as their
foundation has played an important role "in the development and dis-
tribution of vaccines against major infectious diseases that threaten
mankind," the prize committee said.  The AP/Nando Times reports that
a senior official from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation accepted
the award, a small sculpture called "The Antibody," on behalf of the
couple during a ceremony at the International Congress of Immunology
on Sunday in Stockholm, Sweden. In June, the foundation donated $100
million to the Global AIDS and Health Fund, and Gates has also con-
tributed $750 million over five years to "boost global immunization
efforts" (AP/Nando Times, 7/22).  At the World Economic Forum in
January, Gates announced a $100 million "challenge grant" to the In-
ternational AIDS Vaccine Initiative, designed to "encourage others at
the conference of global business and government leaders to contrib-
ute" to the search for an AIDS vaccine (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report,
1/29).

Opinion

G8's Pledge of $1.3 Billion to Global AIDS Fund a 'Pittance,' Phila-
delphia Inquirer Says

"It is sad that, with its announcement about the pledges to the AIDS
fund, the G8 conference was able to seize the PR high ground," an
editorial in the Philadelphia Inquirer states.  The commentary piece
calls the G8's pledge of $1.3 billion to the Global AIDS and Health
Fund created by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan "a comparative pit-
tance."  Considering that the combined GDP of the United States and
other G8 countries reaches $30 trillion and that these nations ac-
count for two-thirds of the global economic output, $1.3 billion is
"a handful of change thrown at an epidemic that has become the mod-
ern-day equivalent of the bubonic plague."  The amount also falls
"far short" of the $7 billion to $10 billion sought by Annan for the
treatment and prevention fund to be effective.  But $1.3 billion
"still makes for a good sound bite," the editorial says, adding,
"It's enough to be spun into good PR by rich nations desperately in
need of a softer image. ... Just remember, [HIV/AIDS] isn't fooled by
PR" (Philadelphia Inquirer, 7/24).

The Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report is published for kaisernetwork.org,
a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, by National
Journal Group Inc. c 2001 by National Journal Group Inc. and Kaiser
Family Foundation. All rights reserved
Contact Daily Reports Staff Editorial
Tel: +1-202-672-5952
Fax: +1-202-672-5767
mailto:dailyreports@kaisernetwork.org


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