“Fast Track: Ending AIDS by 2030” (General Assembly of the United Nations )
Bern, 25.09.2014 - New York, 25.09.2014 - Address by the President of the Swiss Confederation, Mr. Didier Burkhalter, delivered at the high-level week of the 69th session of the General Assembly of the United Nations - Check against delivery
Mr. Vice-Secretary General,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
We share a common objective: Ghana with whom we have the pleasure of co-hosting this event, Switzerland and UNAIDS and you all who are attending this event: all continents, all generations and all stakeholders have to have this common goal: to finally end the AIDS epidemic.
We can share a common ambition: end the epidemic by 2030! This objective is possible. It depends on our commitment, on the quality and the strength of our work!
Ladies and gentlemen:
Thankfully we can say today that we know the AIDS epidemic. We know how to prevent HIV infection. We know how to treat the disease.
Yet, AIDS is still globally the number one cause of mortality among young women, as stated in the latest UNAIDS GAP report. Every minute in the word, a young woman is infected with HIV.
We cannot close our eyes to this double reality: we know how to treat the disease, yet it continues to violently strike the heart of our future.
This sad reality, this river of tears made of a multitude of dramatic individual stories has to make us strongly react. Youth is the future of our world; young women are the mothers of this future.
Furthermore, in spite of existing treatment and the knowledge we have, new HIV infections are also increasing in Europe among injecting drug users.
As for children that are infected: they don’t always have adequate pediatric treatment.
These facts underscore that we have to react together and we have to act strongly. Acting together is a necessity as we are all directly concerned: the epidemic continues to affect all regions of the world, not only low income countries. We have both a universal responsibility to address this challenge and a direct interest in doing so.
Our action has to be anchored on four pillars:
1) Respect and promotion of the right to health, including sexual and reproductive rights,
2) Fight violence against women in all contexts and particularly in contexts of war and recognize that in conflicts this form of violence is a central vector of HIV,
3) Ensure that the respect of human rights becomes the universal corner stone to equal access to prevention and treatment; discrimination has to end and we have to take into account the underlying causes of the specific vulnerability of certain groups of people and countries,
4) Focus on active and efficient prevention: youth and adolescents in particular must have access to the information they need to make responsible choices for their future.
Ladies and gentlemen:
The Post 2015 development agenda is a unique opportunity. It is an opportunity to define an ambitious and universal vision for health and in particular for a substantial acceleration of the AIDS response.
As for poverty, the only way forward to reach our goal is a comprehensive and multi-sector approach to AIDS. To have impact, we have to set objectives for education, for gender equality, for nutrition, for social security and take into account the realities of the epidemic in our development and economic policies. This is the only way we will end AIDS.
This integrated approach will ensure that our investments and actions are sustainable.
Ladies and gentlemen:
The key to success also lies in the continuity and coherence of action and dialogue. Switzerland is proud that Geneva offers a unique platform in that regard.
We want to strengthen the links among networks and create synergies, with UNAIDS, WHO as well as a wide range of stakeholders and essential partners like the le Human Rights Council, the World Trade Organization, the United Nations, other international organizations, many NGOs, research centers and stakeholders of the private sector and civil society.
Switzerland is committed to continuing to facilitate and encourage dialogue among partners so as to avoid “sector silo” approaches and strengthen or action and impact by bringing together different competencies.
Ladies and gentlemen:
We have to be ambitious and reach the vision of the “three zeros”: “Zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths”. An “AIDS free generation” is now possible. It is our responsibility to make this happen.
I thank you.