UN Political Declaration issued by Heads of State commits to fast track ending AIDS by 2030, funding and implementing the targets in the Global Plan to End TB 2016-2020 and other ambitious targets.
8th June, New York -- UN Heads of State and governments are meeting this week in New York at the UN High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS. Governments adopted the Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS at the opening plenary of the High-Level Meeting, which includes a historic set of commitments in the joint fight to End TB and AIDS by 2030.
The Declaration includes a commitment to reducing TB related deaths among People Living with HIV by 75% by 2020 as outlined in the WHO End TB Strategy, funding and implementing the targets in the Stop TB Partnership’s Global Plan to End TB 2016-2020, and achieving the Plan’s 90-(90)-90 TB targets of reaching 90% of all people who need TB treatment, including 90% of populations at high-risk, and achieving at least 90% treatment success.
"For the first time, we are united and determined to see this fight through to the end. This UN High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS comes at a turning point for both the HIV and the TB communities, as we set our aim on ending the scourges of these twin diseases by 2030", said Dr. Aaron Motsoaledi, Chair of the Stop TB Partnership Coordinating Board and Minister of Health of South Africa.
"I have said before that we cannot win the fight against AIDS in isolation, and the same applies to our efforts against TB. Many world leaders share this view, as evidenced by the Political Declaration. The Declaration includes a call for patient-centred integration and co-location of HIV and TB services, intensified TB case finding among all persons living with HIV, and a commitment to reduce TB-related deaths among people living with HIV by 75% by 2020", said Minister Motsoaledi.
The Political Declaration includes a set of specific, time-bound targets to set the world on course to end the AIDS epidemic as a public health threat by 2030.
"The world has an opportunity to end an epidemic that has defined public health for a generation," said the Executive Director of UNAIDS, Michel Sidibé. "The decisions made here, including the commitment to zero new HIV infections, zero AIDS-related deaths and zero discrimination, will provide the springboard for the implementation of an innovative, evidence-informed and socially just agenda that will end the AIDS epidemic by 2030."
WHO and the Stop TB Partnership co-organized a Ministerial panel this morning conveyed by the UN Special Envoy for TB Dr. Eric Goosby to highlight joint actions needed against TB, HIV and TB/HIV co-infection.
The Declaration also calls for a greater focus on vulnerable TB populations, including 100% coverage of intensified TB case finding among all persons living with HIV, with particular attention to underserved and especially at risk populations, including children. The Declaration expresses grave concern on continued discriminatory attitudes and policies towards people living with HIV and TB.
The Stop TB Partnership would like to thank the many partners and organizations who worked together to ensure that bold TB/HIV targets and interventions were included in the Declaration, including UNAIDS leadership, the governments of Switzerland and Zambia, who served as the co-facilitators of the UN High-Level Meeting, and members of the Stop TB Coordinating Board, particularly the Board's leadership.