AIDS at 25

The theme of the conference was Time to Deliver. But did they?

At the closing ceremony UN Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa Stephen Lewis called upon the governments of all nations to deliver on their funding promises.

"We are on the cusp of a huge financial crisis,'' Lewis warned the gathering, noting that the G-8 countries haven't lived up to the pledging promises they made to the Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria at their 2005 summit in Gleneagles, Scotland.

"No one is asking for any more than was promised,'' Lewis said. "Everything in the battle against AIDS is being jeopardized by the G-8.''

Will they?

I asked the woman, a South African, sitting next to me at the closing ceremonies what she thought of the closing session, of the conference. It's been good and well organized, but long, she said. "Finally!" she remarked when the co-chairs of the Toronto officially passed the emblamatic globe over to the chairs of the Mexico conference. Too many long speeches by officials, I sensed.

On the way out, I ran into a friend, a member of the Canadian AIDS Society, and asked whether she thought these conferences and the speeches did any good. It's inspiration, at least, to keep going until the next conference, she said, adding that Stephen Lewis's precise 15-point action plan is better than vague statements like "Empower women!"

To sum up his points:
1. Abstinence only programs do not work.
2. Harm reduction does work.
3. Circumcision should be promoted.
4. Microbicides must be made available.
5. Stop using second-rate drugs to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV in Africa and other parts of the world.
6. Fund the World Food Program with the money it needs to provide proper nutrition to those taking anti-retroviral treatment.
7. Stop violence against women. (There hasn't been enough talk of this at the conference, he added.)
8. Resolve the debate over HIV testing and counseling. (Watch the Know Your Status Campaign in Lesotho.)
9. Stop child sexual abuse.
10. Provide support to the orphans.
11. Recognize the contributions of grandmothers to society, and provide them with sustainable incomes, food and school fees.
12. Continue to roll out treatment...and speed it up!
13. Deliver the funding that has been promised.
14. Provide programs for youth.
15. Right gender inequalities, by establishing a UN agency for women's rights.

Lewis, whose term will conclude come year end, asked that his successor be African, but most importantly an African woman.

His speech was received with a standing ovation that lasted more than a minute. "Amazing. Just amazing," a woman behind me cheered.

Did they deliver? I think we'll still have to wait and see if the Global Fund's goal is met, if pseudoscience is washed away, if vulnerable groups receive the counseling and care they require, and if more human resources can be roused up to help in developing countries. Certainly, the public is more aware, but in a few months when the glow of the conference has dulled, perhaps a new slogan should be adopted: Time to Remember.