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No SADC response to AIDS drug offer

    JOHANNESBURG

    Health ministers from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) said at the weekend that their countries were not equipped to respond to an offer from pharmaceutical companies to cut the costs of AIDS drugs for poor countries, news reports said on Monday.

    A statement read out by South African Health Minister, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang was quoted as saying: “The ministers wish to stress that as of now, no concrete offer or mechanism to effect such an offer is in place.”

    It added: “Ministers noted with strong concern that the manner in which the proposed offer was announced could lead to alienation of governments from their people as the public was given the impression that the prices of anti-retroviral drugs have been drastically reduced and are immediatly available.”

    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

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