Celebrate life on World AIDS Day

Celebrate life on World AIDS Day


Tomorrow, December 1 is World AIDS Day; a time to celebrate the many lives saved by HIV prevention and treatment programs. It also serves as a reminder that we all must do much more—as individuals, communities, and as world citizens—to fight the spread of HIV and AIDS.

Across the globe some 33 million people are living with HIV and every day nearly 7,500 new infections occur. In its “2008 Report on Global AIDS Epidemic,” UNAIDS said the rate of new infections has gone down in several countries but this “favorable” trend has been “partially offset” by increases in new infections in other nations.

Let’s observe World AIDS Day with a celebration of life, because the people who were once dying are now living and thriving members of society. For more than 25 years, the world community has witnessed the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS. Until recently, many wondered whether prevention, treatment and care could ever be successfully in resource-limited settings where HIV was once a death sentence. Just over five years ago, only 50,000 people living with HIV in all of sub-Saharan Africa were receiving antiretroviral treatment. Today an estimated 3 million people are now receiving antiretroviral treatment in low and middle-income countries.
In 2003, President George W. Bush launched the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to combat global HIV/AIDS – the largest commitment by any nation to combat a single disease in history. Through PEPFAR, the U.S. Government has already provided $18.8 billion in HIV/AIDS funding, and the U.S. Congress has authorized up to $48 billion for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria over the next five years. Something positive I tend to focus on as I happily bid goodbye to Bush.

There are many success stories resulting from the tireless work of many organizations responding to this pandemic. Most of the organizations I have listed below I have had the privilege of seeing first hand their transformational work when I was on the ground in Africa. The others, new relationships with NGO’s I have admired and have had the pleasure of meeting over the last year. I hope to welcome them into the Voices for Humanity community and spread their message to you in more detail in the upcoming months.

In this spirit, on World AIDS Day 2008, let’s join together in celebrating life! I salute these organizations and invite you to join hands with them and strongly encourage you to support them in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Together, you have always shown that strong partnerships enable ordinary people to do extraordinary things.

Let’s make extraordinary things happen today-World AIDS DAY December 1, 2008.

http://projecthopeforafrica.org/
http://www.mamamaria.org/index.htm
http://www.aliveandkicking.org.uk/
http://www.wwo.org/
http://www.globalcampsafrica.org/
http://www.grassrootsoccer.org/
http://www.46664.com/

Peace,
Voices for Humanity