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2011 High Level Meeting on AIDS
General Assembly, UN, New York, 8-10 June 2011

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Statements and Webcast

Gabon
H.E. Mr. Ali Bongo Ondimba, President

LANGUAGE: ENGLISH

8 June 2011

  • Statement: French (Check against delivery)

Statement Summary

Ali Bongo Ondimba, President of Gabon, said today’s meeting was an opportunity to make a new commitment to combat HIV/AIDS.  He said he had presided over a meeting of the Council yesterday, which adopted a resolution on HIV/AIDS.  Africa had insufficient resources to deal with the epidemic.  It was necessary to mobilize more resources to strengthen strategies for action.  Much had been achieved in the last 30 years since AIDS was first discovered.  Today, there was more knowledge of the epidemic, better care and better access to treatment.  Better cooperation among all stakeholders had led to a reduction in mortality due to HIV, less infections, and greater life expectancy for those living with HIV.  Gabon, under his leadership, continued to invest significant resources in the fight against HIV/AIDS, despite its limited resources.

Gabon had increased resources, improved universal access to care, offered free health insurance, and decentralized medical care for those living with HIV across the board in all healthcare services, he said.  The Government’s goal was to develop better prevention and treatment programmes in all health-care services.  He called on the international community to create new innovative financing schemes in order to generate the resources needed to fight the disease.

Societies must try to protect those living with HIV and those at high risk of stigmatization, he said.  They must also address youth’s particular vulnerability to the disease.  Youth was sacred.  He called for intensified action to prevent the disease among young people and for using social media in that regard to implement HIV prevention strategies.  The international community had not fulfilled its commitments as set forth in the 2001 and 2006 declarations on HIV/AIDS.  The current meeting’s outcome document must be more dynamic.  It must respond to the call to achieve universal access to treatment.

Source: GA/11086