Statements and Webcast
Barbados
H.E. Mr. Stephen Lashley, Minister of Family, Culture and Sport
9 June 2011
- Statement: English (Check against delivery)
Statement Summary
STEPHEN LASHLEY, Minister for Family, Culture and Sport of Barbados, outlined his country’s efforts to combat HIV and AIDS, saying that each Government Ministry had an annual action plan. Together, those plans provided a framework to support domestic and international goals aimed at addressing the epidemic. Among other things, Barbados was intent on reducing mother-to-child transmissions, increasing the funds dispersed to civil society organizations, raising the number of persons in high-risk populations with access to health services and augmenting the number of sex workers using condoms. He stressed, as a matter of urgency, the need to address the lack of access to concessionary funding among countries like his own, due to its relatively per capita income.
Highlighting the national bipartisan approach to addressing HIV, he said it was illustrated by a recent declaration signed by both the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. Barbados recognized its shared responsibilities in the effort to reach the “zero goals” of 2015 — zero new infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. Further, the Government also recognized its own domestic goals, including supporting those living with HIV. As a country, Barbados would continue to take appropriate programmatic action to improve monitoring and evaluation for evidence-based planning, ramp up civil society partnerships and adopt rights-based approaches, among other measures.
Source: GA/11090