World AIDS Day -- December 1st, 2009

Today, December 1st, 2009, is World AIDS Day. A day to take stock of the progress made worldwide to combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

World AIDS Day is held on December 1st each year to create awareness of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and to reduce the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS.

Various countries in collaboration with the WHO, Global Fund, UNICEF, USAID and other international funding agencies have made progress towards reducing the rate of the spread of HIV/AID infection and improved the quality of life of those affected.

On November 30th, 2009, The Global Fund -- a nonprofit organization that was established to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria announced its end-of-year results, which showed unprecedented progress in the fight against the three diseases. 

Through its investments in health programs in 140 countries, the Global Fund supports lifesaving antiretroviral treatment for 2.5 million people living with HIV, and has supported effective tuberculosis drugs treatment for 6 million people, and the distribution of 104 million bed nets to prevent malaria. 

As a result, more than 4.9 million lives have been saved. These are people who would have been dead, had it not been for interventions supported by the Global Fund. Every day, 3,600 deaths are averted. With US$ 9.3 billion disbursed to more than 500 grants so far, the Global Fund currently provides nearly a quarter of all international financing for AIDS globally, as well as three-fifths for TB and malaria.*

Yet much more remains to be done. You can learn more by visiting the following websites to find out how you can help:

• Official World AIDS Day website

• Global Fund website

• (RED) website

*Source: http://www.theglobalfund.org/en/pressreleases/?pr=pr_091130

PEPFAR & The Global Fund Collaborate To Treat 3.7 Million Living With HIV/AIDS

Programs Jointly Support Majority of 4 Million on Treatment in Low and Middle-Income Countries

Washington - The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria announced today that the two programs are jointly supporting antiretroviral treatment for nearly 3.7 million of the estimated 4 million individuals in low and middle-income countries who currently receive treatment globally.

Through its partnerships with more than 30 countries through September 2009, PEPFAR has provided direct support for life-saving antiretroviral treatment for over 2.4 million men, women and children.  The Global Fund has supported treatment for 2.5 million people worldwide. Approximately 1.3 million people receive treatment supported by both PEPFAR bilateral programs and the Global Fund, and thus are counted in the totals for each organization. These numbers reflect the strong country-level partnership between PEPFAR and the Global Fund. For example, in India, U.S. Government programs provide technical assistance to treatment services and the antiretroviral drugs are provided by the Global Fund.  

PEPFAR and the Global Fund enjoy a complementary and supportive relationship in the fight against HIV and AIDS worldwide. In order to exploit synergies, PEPFAR and Global Fund-financed programs coordinate at the country level to ensure that resources are used efficiently and effectively. Collaboration and coordination are crucial to the efficient use of money and for making further progress in providing AIDS treatment and care to the millions still in need.

PEPFAR is the largest commitment by any nation to combat a single disease in history. Through PEPFAR, U.S. Government is the first and largest donor to the Global Fund, contributing $3.5 billion to date, with additional pledges that will bring the total U.S. Government contribution to $4.5 billion. 

Read more:  http://www.theglobalfund.org/en/pressreleases/?pr=pr_091201a

The ‘big squat’ to take a stand on sanitation – Jack Sim in Chennai

Jack Sim, founder, World Toilet Organization (the other WTO, as he puts it) was in Chennai [India] for an awareness drive ahead of World Toilet Day on November 19. “WTO is an advocacy group. We don’t actually build toilets; we partner with organisations across the world and share knowledge and experience,” says Sim.

He says many people have TVs and mobile phones but no toilets. “It’s about prioritising sanitation; 40% of the world has no access to proper toilets. Sanitation is about making people aware of the relationship between hygiene and health,” he says.

WTO which has over 200 partners worldwide, 42 of which are in India is one of the few organisations that focusses only on sanitation and toilets instead of water. “Everyone clubs water and sanitation, and 95% of the funds go towards water projects. But good sanitation is the first step towards clean water,” he says.

Sim started “the other WTO” in 2001 to disseminate serious facts with a sense of humour. The logo is a toilet seat shaped like a heart. “I thought the best way to break the toilet taboo was to use lots of puns.” But the name, which everyone thinks is “really bad at first” sticks in people’s minds. “That’s because every mother has told her child not to talk about the toilet. It’s not polite’. And here we are talking about the loo quite freely,” says Sim, who is often called Toilet Man.

 

And it’s not just about getting toilets installed. “You have to keep them clean too. So Sim has started the World Toilet College in Singapore that provides training in toilet maintenance and design. “I’m hoping we can open one in India too to train toilet cleaners like technicians.” 

Read more: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/The-big-squat-to-take-a-stand-on-sanitation/articleshow/5217289.cms

Today is Global Handwashing Day!

Global Handwashing Day!

Today, October 15th, 2009, is Global Handwashing Day. The goal of the campaign is to create awareness of the need to reduce communicable diseases through handwashing.

Given the fact that it is flu season here in the US and the concerns that we all have about swine flu, this could not have come at a better time.

For people living in developing countries worldwide, communicable diseases are an ever present menace that leads to high infant mortality from diarrhea and other communicable diseases.

Judicious hand washing is one of the best and most effective means of reducing the risk of communicable diseases. You can read more about the campaign at the website below and please be sure to forward the link to your friends and family members or share on your Blog or Facebook Profile page.

http://www.globalhandwashingday.org/

To ensure that the campaign is successful, bloggers in more than 150 countries are participating in a joint Blog Action Day to spread awareness of Global Handwashing Day. If you are a blogger, please sign on at the Blog Action Day website to assist with the campaign.

http://www.blogactionday.org/en/blogs

The primary target group for the Global Handwashing Day campaign is children so that we can instill in them a lifelong habit of handwashing and cleanliness. After all as the saying goes, "Cleanliness is next to Godliness!".

The Global Handwashing Day campaign also brings to focus another related issue -- the need for universal access to clean water and adequate sanitation. Until the majority of people in developing countries have access to clean water and adequate sanitation, the handwashing campaign will not be effective. The need for clean water and ecological sanitation projects that will ensure a more complete cycle of disease reduction and containment cannot be overemphasized enough.

According to UNICEF -- "Almost fifty per cent of the developing world’s population – 2.5 billion people – lack improved sanitation facilities, and over 884 million people still use unsafe drinking water sources. Inadequate access to safe water and sanitation services, coupled with poor hygiene practices, kills and sickens thousands of children every day, and leads to impoverishment and diminished opportunities for thousands more.

Poor sanitation, water and hygiene have many other serious repercussions. Children – and particularly girls – are denied their right to education because their schools lack private and decent sanitation facilities. Women are forced to spend large parts of their day fetching water. Poor farmers and wage earners are less productive due to illness, health systems are overwhelmed and national economies suffer. Without WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene), sustainable development is impossible." [Please visit the UNICEF website to learn more: http://www.unicef.org/wash/]

We call on government officials, legislators, policymakers, local governments, funding agencies and communities worldwide to make universal access to clean water and ecological sanitation an immediate priority. This is one of the best means for developing countries to make progress towards attainment of the Millennium Development Goals.

Dedication: I am dedicating this blog post on Global Handwashing Day to the memory of Michael Jackson whose global humanitarian efforts created worldwide awareness for the need for global action to end poverty and childhood diseases.

Global Handwashing Day Video: