lack of money, the world risks "losing control of the epidemic", warn experts

The fight against AIDS requires billions more dollars, otherwise the epidemic may start over again, experts warned Sunday in Amsterdam, on the eve of the opening of the International Conference on this issue.

Lack of money and explosion of new infections. "We will have problems if we do not have more money," said Mark Dybul, a researcher and US diplomat, at a symposium held before the high mbad of the fight against AIDS, from Monday to Friday. Mark Dybul is a former leader of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, a foundation that invests in the fight against this disease. The worst case scenario, he says, is that the lack of funding is combined with the risk of an explosion of new infections because of rapid population growth in some hard-hit countries, particularly in Africa. "Mix these two things together and you will end up in a major crisis," he warned, fearing that "the world will lose control of the epidemic."

$ 7 billion to be found. Today, 36.9 million people are living with the HIV virus, hoping it will not worsen in AIDS. The number of infections is declining and for the first time since the beginning of the century, the annual death toll has dropped below one million in 2016 (990,000) and 2017 (940,000). But UNAIDS, the UN's AIDS agency, estimates that $ 7 billion a year in funding for the disease is no longer a threat to global public health in 2030.

" We are very far from our goal. " The community of researchers and badociations is especially concerned about a decline in US endowments. Since the election of Donald Trump, the United States, the first major contributor to the fight against AIDS, have planned cuts, which have not yet been adopted by Congress. "Unless we take drastic action, we will not even get close to the goal set for 2030," said Nduku Kilonzo of Kenya's National AIDS Control Council. "We are very, very far from our goal, not only in terms of eliminating AIDS, but simply prevention," she said, pointing out that funds dedicated to condom distribution had fallen sharply. [19659005] [ad_2]
Source link