Richard Bruton
Question:62 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the actions the Government will take in 2004 to assist in the global fight against the spread of AIDS. [30433/03]
Written Answers. - Overseas Development Aid.
Bernard J. Durkan
Question:131 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the progress to date and his influence to address the AIDS issue on the African continent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30663/03]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 62 and 131 together.
Recent statistics published by UNAIDS indicated that in 2003 over 40 million people were living with the HIV-AIDS virus. Sub-Saharan Africa, by far the worst affected region, is now home to over 26.6 million people living with HIV-AIDS. Approximately 3.2 million new infections occurred there in 2003, while the epidemic claimed the lives of an estimated 2.3 million Africans in the past year.
HIV-AIDS is a key priority for the development co-operation Ireland programme. Ireland was one of the first donors to develop a HIV-AIDS strategy and we have worked to ensure that the issue is high on the agenda of the EU and of the UN's funds and programmes. Since 2001, Ireland's financial allocations to the fight against AIDS have increased ten-fold with a budget allocation of €40 million in 2003.
This level of funding will be sustained in budget allocations for 2004. These resources are directed at HIV-AIDS activities at the global, regional, national and community levels and are implemented through international and regional organisations and in our programme countries. The latter include six highly affected countries in southern and eastern Africa.
In his address to the UN General Assembly high level meeting on HIV-AIDS on 23 September 2003, the Minister for Foreign Affairs announced that Ireland is making HIV-AIDS a key priority during its Presidency of the European Union in the first half of 2004. In addition to a major conference on the pandemic in the European and Central Asian region, a number of high level meetings and conferences will be held on the HIV-AIDS issue. The aspects to be addressed include the role of parliamentarians in the fight against HIV-AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa; the issue of HIV/AIDS in the context of humanitarian crises; and the status of research and development into preventive technologies including a HIV vaccine. These meetings will provide a forum for high level policy dialogue on HIV-AIDS and reinforce political commitment within the EU member states to combat the spread of HIV-AIDS and alleviate its impact.
Ireland has advocated a strong response to HIV-AIDS through financial support and representation on the executive boards of UN agencies such as UNDP and UNICEF. In addition, Ireland provides funding to the joint United Nations programme on HIV-AIDS – UNAIDS. UNAIDS is the main advocate for global action on the epidemic. It brings together the efforts and resources of eight UN system organizations to help prevent new HIV infections, to provide care for those already infected and to mitigate the impact of the pandemic.
Ireland will continue its support to the global fund to fight AIDS, TB and malaria and will be represented at all the board meetings in 2004. We use our membership of the board to contribute to strategic policy orientation and our work at country level also feeds into policy dialogue. At the country level, development co-operation Ireland will be working with the Clinton Foundation and other donors, such as Norway and Canada to support the Government of Mozambique in its efforts to implement a national HIV/AIDS strategy, including a plan to provide life-saving drugs to infected poor people.
HIV-AIDS continues to be the biggest single obstacle to reducing poverty and to attaining the millennium development goals. Through the development co-operation Ireland programme, the Government will do all in its power to combat the pandemic at the global, regional and national levels in developing countries.
Questions Nos. 63, 64 and 65 answered with Question No. 14.