Address by Congress President at the Conference on International Policy Makers

[Guest guest]

Address by Congress President at the Conference on International Policy Makers -

Towards a World without AIDS Saturday, 11th May 2002: Vigyan Bhawan

Honourable Prime Minister, Chief Ministers, Dr. C.P. Thakur, Dr. Seth

Berkeley, Dr McSweeney, Ms , Ms Yuvraj, Kapil Sibal, Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen:

The presence of political persons cutting across party lines here this

morning demonstrates a collective will to address, in a meaningful manner,

this issue of vital significance. This presence should reaffirm our

national resolve to combat, in the most vigorous manner possible, the

serious HIV/AIDS crisis in the country. Let me also add my personal word of

welcome to Dr. Seth Berkeley whose relentless endeavour to mobilize an

international effort, to develop and deploy an AIDS vaccine, are truly

inspirational.

India's development experience in many areas, including in public health

demonstrates that political will, leadership, action and mobilization, drive

success. The fact that three chief ministers are here today is a most

encouraging sign. I hope this meeting of parliamentarians will be followed

up by similar assemblies in different states as well. Last June, I

represented our country at the special UN General Assembly Session on

HIV/AIDS in New York. Earlier, I had become familiar with the HIV/AIDS

issue many years ago through projects being carried out by the Rajiv Gandhi

Foundation. But the New York meeting gave me an opportunity of looking at

India's AIDS control programme in its global context. I was struck by two

factors. The first one that India spends less than 50 million dollars

annually on its AIDS control programme. And the second that unlike most

other countries India does not include drug therapy in this programme.

India faces numerous public health challenges that call for greater

government spending. National programmes that have been in existence for

decades, for the control and eradication of malaria, tuberculosis and

leprosy themselves, are underfunded. Further, the system must be able to

absorb and effectively utilize increased resources, if those were to be made

available. Even so, it does appear to me that given the special nature and

magnitude of the HIV/AIDS crisis confronting us, the level of funding of the

AIDS control programme is substantially inadequate.

If we are to significantly increase the investments going into AIDS control,

then in the short-term, there may be no alternative but to depend on

international sources of funding, multilateral, bilateral and philanthropic.

But the prospects in this regard do not appear to be very bright. I recall

that in New York, there was a commitment to establish a 10 billion dollar

global UN fund to fight AIDS. Unfortunately, the actual collection for the

global UN fund so far, is just about 1.5 billion dollars and the fund has

been expanded to cover malaria and TB as well. We have, therefore,

necessarily to depend on our own sources of financing. At the same time, we

should utilize the opportunity that fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic gives us

and that is, to bring about a radical transformation in the state of our

public health infrastructure. I have, for long,, felt that most of our

community health problems arise from lack of basic hygiene and sanitation,

two areas that preoccupied the Father of the Nation during our Freedom

Movement. If we could recapture that level of concern and concerted action

then half the battle would be won.

About the use of drug therapy in the AIDS control programme, the impression

is that it would be astronomically expensive if extended universally. At

about a dollar a day per patient, the country would have to spend over a

billion dollars every year if it were to follow the example of other

countries like Brazil, Botswana and South Africa and distribute drugs free

to patients. It is ironical that Indian pharmaceutical companies have

emerged as suppliers of AIDS control drugs to the world and are being

welcomed in other countries, while we ourselves are reluctant to involve

them in the national AIDS control programme. This is a paradox that needs

to be resolved.

I also recall that in New York many countries, including India, raised the

vexed issue of intellectual property rights. We had expressed our view that

the WTO laws give excessive protection to multinational pharmaceutical

companies, and do not take into account the special needs of poorer

countries and poor patients. At Doha last November, the WTO recognized

these demands especially in the context of AIDS and agreed to change

international laws, so as to protect the interests of developing countries

and of poor consumers, within these countries. India is in the process of

revising its patents legislation and I hope that what has been agreed to in

Doha which has great relevance for public health programmes, will get

reflected in our legislation.

The National AIDS Control Organization has done good work in a relatively

short period. But the task is gigantic and there is much more to be

done-sensitively and effectively. Information, education and communication,

particularly at the local level, will be the key. Govemment-run programmes

must have greater partnerships with NGOS, social action and women's groups,

community and cultural organizations, religious leadership, teaching

community and the corporate sector. We must pay special attention to

children who are affected, directly or indirectly, by this devastation. We

must make innovative use of the mass media, popular film personalities,

particularly television, given their phenomenal reach in our society. We

must highlight, propagate and replicate the success stories we have had in

West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.

Particular attention needs to be paid to the special circumstances that have

caused the spread of AIDS on a disturbing scale in the northeastern states

of Manipur and Nagaland. We must ensure that health facilities in the more

populous regions of north India are in a state of total preparedness to

prevent the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS.

There is simply no room for complacency. We have eliminated smallpox in

India. We are poised to eliminate polio. The journey to control HIV/AIDS

is long and arduous. But succeed we must. And succeed we will if we are

both compassionate in our approach and passionate in our execution. That, I

believe, should be the message from this assembly today.

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