IV. HIV/AIDS
- FOCUS ON AFRICA AND VULNERABLE GROUPS

The HIV/AIDS epidemic is a human tragedy on a global scale. It makes orphans of children, breaks families up and robs society of its most important resource – people. The epidemic is not an isolated health problem; in many poor countries it is one of the key barriers to sustainable development and economic growth. In 2004, Copenhagen Consensus concluded that development assistance for HIV/AIDS prevention and care is one of the areas where the most development for money is to be gained. Halting the spread of HIV/AIDS will give a boost to the whole national economy in poor countries.

The following figures clearly illustrate the size of the challenge. Today, more than 40 million live with HIV. In 2005, more than 3 million people died of AIDS and almost 5 million people became infected with HIV.

Hidden behind these global figures is a story of the world’s inequality. Whilst it has been possible to keep the epidemic under control in Europe and North America, the disease in other parts of the world, particularly in Africa, has developed into a long-term development problem. While approximately 10 per cent of the world’s population lives in Sub-Saharan Africa, the same continent is home to more than 60 per cent of the world’s HIV sufferers. More than 60 per cent of these sufferers are women and more than 15 million African children have already lost one or both of their parents due to AIDS.

It is a vital priority for the Government that development assistance contributes to preventing the epidemic from spinning even more out of control. There is no quick or simple solution to the HIV/ AIDS crisis in Africa. What is needed is a sustained effort where all actors cooperate actively – and here the Danish Government will meet its responsibility.

In the coming years, Danish development assistance will further focus on building up national health systems that can effectively manage the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS. The Government will pursue a two-pronged approach: firstly, it will contribute to building up capacity in the health systems in developing countries, and secondly, it will implement initiatives targeted directly at combating HIV/AIDS.

The Government will double assistance to HIV/AIDS initiatives to an amount equalling DKK 1 billion in 2010.

Table 3 below shows the gradual rise in the level of assistance funding to HIV/AIDS initiatives up to 2010, which will raise the level of the Danish assistance from approximately DKK 500 million in 2006 to approximately DKK 1 billion in 2010.

Table 3: New funds designated for HIV/AIDS initiatives up to 2010 (DKK million)

In 2007, the Danish efforts to combat HIV/AIDS will specifically be strengthened through:

• Innovative multilateral HIV/AIDS initiatives with focus on vulnerable groups
  The Government will set aside DKK 100 million to new innovative HIV/AIDS initiatives with particular focus on vulnerable groups such as orphans and young people in Africa. The initiatives will also be designed to promote the active participation of civil society in the fight against HIV/AIDS. The more precise distribution of the new funds will be based on a concrete assessment in 2007 of which international organisations Danish development funds can be channelled through to achieve maximum impact.
• Strengthened bilateral initiatives
  Bilateral initiatives to combat HIV/AIDS will be strengthened by making commitments in the bilateral assistance to Burkina Faso, Ghana and Uganda to implement activities amounting to DKK 200 million.

Table 4: Commitments regarding new bilateral HIV/AIDS initiatives in 2007

At the same time, efforts will be made to integrate HIV/AIDS components in other relevant sector programmes. The initiatives under the bilateral assistance will strengthen the capacity of the countries’ health sectors to tackle the problem of HIV/AIDS more effectively.

At an international level, Denmark will play a leading role in the fight against HIV/AIDS. The Government will maintain the high Danish contribution of DKK 140 million per year to the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. This annual contribution of DKK 140 million places Denmark among the countries that provide the most per capita to the Global Fund.

In order to ensure concrete implementation of the stepped-up efforts against HIV/AIDS, the Government will increase the number of HIV/AIDS advisers – both bilaterally and multilaterally. Specifically, Danish advisers will be posted to a joint Nordic HIV/AIDS centre in Lusaka. The centre will have the capacity to support the building up of enhanced Danish efforts in Africa as well as engage in strong cooperation with like-minded donors. Multilaterally, the Government will work to establish new senior adviser positions in the World Bank, in the EU and in the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

The Government will step up efforts to combat infectious diseases in the coming years by maintaining the extraordinary contribution of DKK 25 million per year to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI). The alliance is a global private-public partnership whose objective is to promote vaccination coverage in developing countries, support the development of vaccines and introduce use of new vaccines.

The Government will continue the efforts to promote sexual and reproductive health and rights. There is a close correlation between this area and the fight against HIV/AIDS. The Government will base its efforts on the new Danish strategy on sexual and reproductive health and rights that was presented in spring 2006. In health programmes, the strategy will lead the Government to invest in strengthening the linkage between community initiatives and HIV/AIDS initiatives.