Search
  1. Home
  2. Africa

West criticised on slow AIDS response

    JOHANNESBURG

    The UN has accused rich Western countries of "criminal negligence" for their slow rescue of HIV/AIDS-afflicted countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

    In a recent statement to the Southern African Board of Health Providers, UN special envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa, Steven Lewis, said it was "morally indefensible" that these countries had been so slow to respond.

    He said while the West would have spent US $750 billion by the time the Iraq invasion and reconstruction was over, they had not been able to find a fraction of that to save millions of Africans dying from AIDS-related illnesses.

    However, Lewis was hopeful that the start of a national HIV/AIDS treatment plan in South Africa could have an "electric effect on the rest of the African continent" and said the announcement could come soon.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

    Share this article

    Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

    We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

    Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

    Become a member of The New Humanitarian

    Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

    Join