AFRO-NETS> More western funding in the fight against AIDS

[Claudio Schuftan <aviva@netnam.vn>]

More western funding in the fight against AIDS
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Senate Boosts Funds for Africa AIDS Fight
Associated Press (10.31.03)
Jim Abrams
 
On Thursday, the Senate approved 89-1 an additional US$ 289 mil-
lion to fight AIDS overseas next year. The increase would bring 
the first installment of President Bush's US$ 15 billion global 
AIDS pledge to US$ 2.4 billion for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 
1. Senators Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) spon-
sored the funding amendment. The Senate later passed the overall 
US$ 18.4 billion foreign aid bill, after rejecting several other 
attempts to boost spending to fight global AIDS.
 
The administration had sought US$ 2 billion for the AIDS initia-
tive for 2003, drawing criticism from AIDS advocates who demanded 
the full US$ 3 billion allowable under the five-year program. Ad-
ministration officials argued that US$ 2 billion was appropriate 
for the first year of the initiative and said they would live up 
to the promises made in the AIDS legislation Bush signed in May.
 
Action on the bill was held up for several days after Senate 
Budget Committee Chair Don Nickles (R-Okla.) demanded reductions 
in other budget areas to cover the extra spending sought by 
DeWine and Durbin. Nickles' office said he supported full funding 
for the AIDS initiative but that it was his job "to make sure 
Congress sticks to its spending limits."
 
The global AIDS funding includes an amendment by Sen. Jeff Ses-
sions (R-Ala.) setting aside US$ 75 million for blood safety. He 
said 25 percent of the blood in Africa is transfused without be-
ing tested.
 
The measure, S. 1426, goes to a House-Senate conference under a 
presidential veto threat: The Senate bill, unlike the House ver-
sion, would overturn the administration's policy of barring money 
to international organizations that perform or support abortions. 
The White House has said the president would veto the bill if 
that provision is in the final version.
 
 
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EU Accelerates Funding for Fights Against AIDS, Tuberculosis and 
Malaria
Associated Press (10.30.03)
 
The European Union stepped up its commitment to fighting "killer 
diseases" Thursday, saying it would accelerate a contribution of 
EUR 170 million (US$ 198.2 million) to the Global Fund to Fight 
AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The move raises Western Europe's 
contribution to 55 percent of the US$ 4.7 billion fund, a UN ini-
tiative. "These killer diseases deserve our full attention," said 
EU Development Commissioner Poul Nielson. The AIDS, TB and ma-
laria epidemics "demand we act on a global scale, set in place 
the right policies and provide predictable financing," he added. 
"This is why our disbursement is being speeded up." The EUR 170 
million contribution was originally to be spread over the 2003-
2006 period, but Nielson said now it will be spent much more 
quickly.

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