ELECTORNIC BULLETIN OF THE SWISS PLATFORM ON HIV/AIDS AND INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

April 2013

How to invest our limited resources most effectively in order to realise a world without AIDS? This was one of the crucial questions debated at the aidsfocus.ch conference of April 11, 2013 in Berne.

Basically everyone agrees that smart investments in the AIDS Response require targeted HIV-interventions such as Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV (PMTCT, antiretroviral treatment, care and support for all, and treatment as prevention. However, it is very important that these measures are accompanied and supported by so-called „critical enablers“, that is factors allowing successful HIV-interventions: Political commitment and advocacy, mobilisation of the communities or reducing stigmatization (see UNAIDS Investment Framework for an effective HIV response).

In the World Café, lively discussions erupted on the issue of focusing: Should we as the partner organisations of aidsfocus.ch increasingly focus on medical HIV-interventions, the effectiveness of which have been scientifically demonstrated? Or should we rather rely on the power and capacity for innovation of local communities and grass-root organisations such as BHASO or Samraksha in order to achieve results and significant on-site changes which, however, cannot be proven in terms of hard data and facts?

According my view, it is essential that each organisation commits itself according to its skills and abilities, and, that it looks for partners who are willing to form cooperations. This has happened in Zimbabwe, where the rather medically oriented organisations SolidarMed and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) successfully cooperate with BHASO, the partner of fepa, complementing one another and making them mutually supportive.

Helena Zweifel Coordinator aidsfocus.ch Executive Director Network Medicus Mundi Switzerland

Bern, 11 April 2013 – A world without AIDS is feasible. Today we stand at a historic turning point. In order to work towards a world without AIDS, it takes the commitment, dedication and cooperation of all: Political decision makers North, East and South, multilateral organizations, NGOs North, East and South, local communities and people living with HIV. The power point presentations by Marjorie Opuni (UNAIDS), Farai Mahaso (BHASO, Zimbabwe), Sanghamittra Iyengar (Samraksha, India) and Jochen Ehmer (SolidarMed, Switzerland) are accessible online.

http://www.aidsfocus.ch

The new framework is based on existing evidence of what works in HIV prevention, treatment, care and support. It is intended to facilitate more focused and strategic use of scarce resources. Modelling of the framework’s impact shows that its implementation would avert 12.2 million new infections and 7.4 million AIDS-related deaths between 2011 and 2020. Through a simplification and clarification of the different elements of HIV efforts, as well as better support for countries to prioritise HIV programmes and assess the synergies between them, the framework presents a radical departure from existing approaches to HIV investment and programming (The Lancet 2011)

http://www.aidsfocus.ch

Zurich, 19 March 2013 - Swiss Aids Care International celebrated its 10th anniversary on March 14 2013 in Zurich. The foundation is now entering a new phase, with plans to step up the training of local care workers at the Newlands Clinic Training Centre in Harare, Zimbabwe. The search has also begun for a successor as Director of the Newlands Clinic, as Prof. Ruedi Lüthy will be giving up some of his duties in the course of the next year for age reasons. Prof. Ruedi Lüthy: “Ten years ago, I would never have dared hope that we would be where we are today. We now need to focus on strengthening our training efforts even more. This is the only way that we can make a lasting improvement to the situation of HIV patients throughout Zimbabwe.”

http://www.swissaidscare.ch

Annual numbers of new HIV diagnoses in Switzerland according to surveillance data were lower in 2010 than in 2000 for all transmission risk groups except men who have sex with men (MSM). Furthermore, a nationwide genetic linkage study found that the majority of clusters representing ongoing transmission in Switzerland were linked to MSM. An increase in the incidence of HIV amongst MSM, despite cART for those who are infected and diagnosed, could result from increasing risk behaviour in HIV-negative or HIV-positive men. Levels of unprotected anal sex have increased in Switzerland, as have the numbers of syphilis and gonorrhoea diagnoses in MSM, despite regular ongoing health promotion campaigns. (2012)

http://www.plosone.org

The post- 2015 development process will be central in shaping the global health agenda and approaches to governance for global health in the decades to come. It will be significantly influenced by the power shifts, contextual drivers and development debates. The purpose of the event is to provide an opportunity for the Geneva diplomatic missions, nongovernmental organisations and other stakeholders to gain knowledge of the results of the thematic consultation, the already made proposals and other possible approaches concerning the post-2015 health agenda.

http://www.graduateinstitute.ch

1. April 2013 - A community health worker model of home-based preventive care, the Philani Intervention Program (PIP), resulted in significantly enhanced maternal and infant wellbeing among pregnant women living with and without HIV in Cape Town townships. The advantages of this model for women living with HIV went beyond those of adhering to PMTCT tasks. Identification of community health workers (CHWs) with a maternal, child health and nutrition programme helped avoid much of the stigma associated with HIV. Home visits created a means for ongoing support for all women in the community.

http://www.aidsmap.com

Brussels, 8 April 2013 - The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria announced a goal of raising US$15 billion so that it can effectively support countries in fighting these three infectious diseases in the 2014-2016 period. The Global Fund is determined to accelerate the gains achieved in recent years through strategic investment in programs that can save millions of lives and tens of billions of dollars in future costs. While acknowledging the challenging fiscal environment in many countries, the Global Fund and its partners point to the remarkable value for money that investing in health provides. (See Replenishment Report: Needs assessment, also available in French)

http://www.theglobalfund.org

Brussels, 8 April 2013 – “While Global Fund advocates fully support the US $15 billion funding request for the Global Fund, there are a number of assumptions included in the methodology of assessing this need that reveal why this target should be considered an absolute minimum, including: Reaching the tipping point requires additional investments in the short-term that will deliver gains in the longer term through, for example, savings incurred from avoiding future treatment costs. In addition to supporting the Global Fund replenishment, implementing and donor countries must continue to search for ways to close the projected remaining funding gap of US $11 billion.

http://icssupport.org

New Delhi/Geneva, 1 April 2013 – The landmark decision by the Indian Supreme Court in Delhi to uphold India's Patents Act in the face of the seven-year challenge by Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis is a major victory for patients' access to affordable medicines in developing countries, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) stated today. “This is a huge relief for the millions of patients and doctors in developing countries who depend on affordable medicines from India, and for treatment providers like MSF," said Dr Unni Karunakara, MSF International President. “This marks the strongest possible signal to Novartis and other multinational pharmaceutical companies that they should stop seeking to attack the Indian patent law.”

http://www.msfaccess.org

1. March 2013 - In every region of the world, HIV incidence among young women is increasing. AIDS continues to be the leading cause of death and disease for women of reproductive age and it is widely recognised that violence is both a cause and consequence of HIV transmission. Women, especially young women living with HIV, continue to experience gross human rights violations that relate to their sexual and reproductive health. Gender inequality has long been recognised as – and continues to be – both a cause and a consequence of HIV. There is now clear evidence globally that intimate partner violence doubles women’s vulnerability to acquiring HIV.

http://aidsconsortium.org.uk

Johannesburg, 6 March 2013 - It is difficult to assess whether donor funding has increased resilience, but gains in health status and HIV/AIDS service coverage - such as the number of eligible people receiving ARV - suggest that health-system capacity has been strengthened. HIV treatment programmes have created new regiments of healthcare workers, including lay counsellors and patients with good ARV adherence who assist with adherence counselling through clinics and community outreach. Community health has been positively affected. A recent study conducted in South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal Province found that increased access to ARV therapy has raised adult life expectancy by more than 11 years since 2004.

http://www.irinnews.org

In low-resource countries especially, community responses to the AIDS epidemic have played a crucial role in providing information, support, services and care. Recently the World Bank published the first comprehensive evaluation of the impact of community responses around the world entitled. The evaluation found that community responses can be effective in increasing knowledge, promoting social empowerment, increasing access to and use of HIV services, and even decreasing HIV incidence, all through the effective mobilization of limited resources. (2013)

http://www.dfid.gov.uk

Action against AIDS Germany just publicized its first and comprehensive think-piece on HIV and AIDS in the post-2015-development framework. “Think-Piece No.1” particularly deals with the outstanding relevance of HIV&AIDS; for sustainable development. Requirements of a Post-2015 HIV&AIDS; and/ or Health-Goal: A specific HIV&AIDS; goal and/or UHC as overarching health-goal should not be limited to focus on the quantitative delivery of healthcare-services. Quality as well as the equity of services and respective health outcomes have also to be taken into account, especially in regard to particularly vulnerable, most-at-risk and most marginalized populations. (2013)

http://bit.ly

The world is changing rapidly with developing nations spearheading global economic growth, impressive poverty reduction and the rise of a healthier, better educated middle class, says the UN Development Programme’s (UNDP) Human Development Report 2013. The accelerated development of the South is critical to the success of the global AIDS response as the most heavily burdened countries are low-and middle income. UNAIDS maintains that getting to zero new infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths will need advances not only in the sphere of health and HIV but in terms of poverty reduction, education, gender equality and enhanced life opportunities. (2013)

http://www.unaids.org

Partner organisations: AIDS & Child, Caritas Switzerland, CO-OPERAID, Déclaration de Berne, FEPA, Fédération Genevoise de Coopération, Gemeinschaft St. Anna-Schwestern, IAMANEH Switzerland, Kindernothilfe Schweiz, Kwa Wazee, medico international Switzerland, mediCuba-Suisse, missio, mission21, SolidarMed, Swiss Aids Care International, Swiss Aids Federation, Swiss Catholic Lenten Fund, Swiss Catholic Women’s League, Swiss MIVA, Swiss Red Cross, Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (SwissTPH), Tear Fund, Terre des hommes Foundation, terre des hommes schweiz, and World Vision Switzerland.

http://www.aidsfocus.ch