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Tackling Rising HIV Levels in Russia, Central Asia
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Moscow, Russia, November 2009-Eastern Europe and Central Asia continue to experience rising rates of HIV, particularly in Russian and Ukraine —home to 90 percent of cases. In Central Asia and the Caucauses, the number of newly reported HIV cases is also rising rapidly. Overall, the region experienced a more than 100 percent increase in people living with the virus between 2001 and 2007, with drug abuse a prevelant cause of illness through use of dirty needles.
“Besedka brings a unique and highly-valued dimension to the overall experience of the EECAAC, which has brought to Moscow more than 2,500 people from 60 countries, primarily from the Eastern Europe and Central Asia,” Anastasia Kamlyk, Besedka Coordinator for the United Nations Development Programme, said. “Critical issues that don’t always receive enough attention in the main conference are addressed in a completely interactive, open and informal manner as at Besedka.”
The programme included people living with HIV, drug users, men who have sex with men and many other people who are not always ready to speak out. Participants discussed a range of topics and also had a rare opportunity to express their views to policymakers such as Michel Sidebe, UNAIDS Executive Director, Michel Kazatchkine, The Global Fund Executive Director, and Gennady Onishchenko, Head of the Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare.
The diaglogue also worked both ways as policy makers also urged individuals and community organizations to be proactive.
“Your advocacy can change a lot. And please don’t underestimate your strength and your influence,” Mr. Kazatchkine said regarding harm reduction and prevention work in some countries of the region. “We already feel it here, at the conference. Everything is in your hands.”
“It is not always about money,” Shombi Sharp, Team Leader of the UNDP HIV/AIDS Regional Programme, said. “It is also about facilitation, strengthening their capacity to express themselves and to advocate for their rights and at some point to become a real force for change.”
The Besedka community dialogue was organized with the support of UNDP, UNAIDS, The Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the Eastern European and Central Asian Network of People Living with HIV and AIDS and the US NIH Office of AIDS Research.
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Such numbers threaten both human health and economic development and in response community leaders from throughout the region met in Moscow to devise solutions. As part of the “Besedka“ programme, representatives from communities on the front lines of the epidemic discussed possible ways to respond to the rising HIV levels. Community representatives explored conventional issues such as harm reduction programmes, HIV prevention, treatment and care and remaining gaps in 