UNITED NATIONS: The Member States of the United Nations have adopted a new political declaration that includes a set of time-bound targets to fast-track the pace of progress towards combating the worldwide scourge of HIV and AIDS, over the next five years, and end the epidemic as a public health threat by 2030. “AIDS is far from over,” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon emphasised at Wednesday’s opening of the high-level meeting, which will run through Friday. “Over the next five years, we have a window of opportunity to radically change the trajectory of the epidemic and put an end to AIDS forever. Despite remarkable progress, if we do not act, there is a danger the epidemic will rebound in low- and middle-income countries,” he added. The high-level meeting has brought together various heads of State and Government, ministers, people living with HIV, representatives from civil society and international organizations, the private sector, scientists and researchers to build on the commitments made in the Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS, and to set the world on course to end the epidemic by 2030 within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Pakistan is being represented by a four-member delegation led by Parliamentary Secretary for Health Darshan Punchiis. It also includes the Director of National AIDS Programme, Dr Abdul Baseer Khan Achakzai, Balochistan’s Health Secretary, Umar Baloch and a representative of the Civil Society. Negotiated by the member states of the UN, the new declaration aims to scale up the national and international support and cooperation to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030, which will also specifically focus on the importance of a fast-track approach to HIV, during the next five years, in order to ensure that global efforts are accelerated during that time, as highlighted in the Secretary-General’s report The Fast-Track approach of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), as specified by the Secretary-General, aims to achieve targets like fewer than 500,000 people newly infected with HIV; fewer than 500,000 people dying from AIDS-related illnesses; and eliminating HIV-related discrimination. In his remarks, Ban also noted that when he became the Secretary-General 10 years ago, AIDS was still devastating families, communities and nations. In many low-income countries, treatment was scarce, and “in 2007, only 3 million people, or one-third of those in need, had access to life-saving antiretroviral drugs.” “We have made enormous progress. Since 2000 the global total of people receiving antiretroviral treatment doubled every three to four years, thanks to cheaper drugs, increased competition and new funding. Today, more than 17 billion people are being treated, saving millions of lives and billions of dollars,” the Secretary-General noted. Furthermore, the world has also achieved its Millennium Development Goal (MDG)-6, “which included halting and reversing the AIDS epidemic” and new HIV infections have declined by 35 per cent since 2000, the UN chief said. Noting that he was particularly happy that new HIV infections among children had gone down by 56 percent in the past 15 years, the Secretary-General further said that Armenia, Belarus, Cuba and Thailand were among the four countries that had eliminated the disease completely. “None of this could have happened without the leadership of people living with HIV, and civil society partners on the ground around the world. They believed that more equitable treatment and access was possible, and they made sure that we responded,” Ban said. “They broke the silence and shone a light on discrimination, intolerance and stigma. They brought their passion to their fight, and that passion will make the end of AIDS a reality,” he added. Reiterating the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which affirms the global commitment to ending the AIDS epidemic within 15 years, the Secretary-General stressed that action taken now could avert an estimated 17.6 million new infections and 11 million premature deaths between 2016 and 2030. “But we must make a radical change within the next five years if we are to achieve that goal,” Ban said, further adding, “that (it) requires commitment at every level: from the global health infrastructure, to all Member States, civil society organizations and non-governmental organizations, to the United Nations Security Council that has dealt with AIDS as a humanitarian issue and a threat to human and national security.” The Secretary-General called on the international community to reinforce and expand on the “unique, multi-sector, multi-actor approach” of UNAIDS, and to ensure that the annual target of $26 billion in funding, including $13 billion for the next three years, is met.” “It means continued advocacy to the most vulnerable groups; and approaches that promote gender equality and empower women. It means leaving no one behind and removing punitive laws, policies and practices that violate people’s dignity and human rights,” . Ban said. Also speaking at the opening of the high-level meeting, the UN General Assembly President, Mogens Lykketoft, emphasised that the meeting was laying the groundwork for future progress in creating healthier outcomes for everyone affected by HIV, as well as building stronger societies prepared for future challenges.