The real cost of cuts in HIV and AIDS spending
People living with HIV are feeling the effects of the global economic crisis as governments around the world cut spending on treatment. According to Miguel D’EScoto President of the UN General Assembly, “many governments are resigned to reducing programmes and diminished expectations”.
He urged governments to reconsider their priorities, appealing to both humanitarian and financial factors: “If we allow cuts now, we will face increased costs and greater human suffering in the future”.
A recent World Bank/UNAIDS report examined the impact of the crisis on 71 countries worldwide as of March 2009. Drop off in funding for HIV and AIDS prevention has been stark in some cases, with more than one in ten countries reporting that their treatment programmes had already been affected. A further third of the surveyed countries, with 1.8 million people on treatment, expect repercussions in the coming year. Treatment programmes in sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean were particularly hard-hit.
The welfare of millions of people is at risk. The roll-out of generic drugs in recent years made treatment a reality for people living with HIV in developing countries giving them the chance to be healthy and productive. These gains could be lost as disrupting antiretroviral treatment leaves people vulnerable to opportunistic diseases and could increase drug resistance complicating future treatment.
Treatment has improved the lives of countless teachers living with HIV and enabled them to continue teaching. This not only benefits the individual teachers but has also proved invaluable to education systems dogged by teacher shortages. Cutbacks in treatment endanger the careers of these teachers and the ability of governments to provide quality education.
The annual report on progress on the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS and the Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS published in May found that the AIDS response was being hindered not only by a lack of funds but also by discriminatory laws and policies. With over 80 countries claiming to be affected, UNAIDS Director Michael Sidibé insisted during the UN General Assembly review on HIV/AIDS, “It is essential that the global response to the AIDS epidemic is grounded in human rights and that discrimination and punitive laws against those most affected by HIV are removed”.
Lastly as the number of new infections still dwarfs the rolling out of treatment, the role of HIV prevention through education remains central to the AIDS response.
