. President of the General Assembly;
. Your Excellencies, Heads of State and Government;
. Secretary General of the United Nations;
. Representatives of the UN System, Other International Organizations;
. NGOs, Members of Civil Society;
. Distinguish delegates;
. Ladies and Gentlemen;

Mr. President

Let me begin by expressing my delegation's appreciation for the professionai manner in which you have been guiding our deliberations. I am sure that under your able leadership this Special Session will be crowned with success.

It is with great pleasure and a great sense of urgency that I accept this invitation to participate in the UN Special Session on HIV/AIDS on behalf of His Excellency Dr. Alhagie Yayha A.J.J. Jammeh, President of the Republic of The Gambia.

The importance and relevance *of our topic of discussion HIV/AIDS cannot be emphasized. This Special Session is most timely, in-fact it is well over-due.
The HIV/AIDS crisis is a huge public health and development problem. The AIDS virus is the single most significant threat to the very survival of human kind. The worrisome data from the United Nation Joint Programme of AIDS - UNAIDS underscores the magnitude and global nature of the AIDS crises especially for Sub-Saharan Africa.

UNAIDS data shows that since the advent of the AIDS pandemic, 50 million individuals worldwide have been infected with HIV of whom more than 36 million are still alive and over 22 million have already died. Last year alone, 5.6 million people were newly infected with HIV and 2.8 million deaths have occurred.

More depressing, yet factual is that about half of ail people who aciuire HIV become infected before they turn 25 and die of AIDS before their 35 h birthday. This age factor makes HIVIAIDS a most urgent problem for ail nations. UNAIDS aiso reported that the overwhelming majority of people with HIV, a staggering 95% of the global total, live in the developing countries. Official data also show that SubSaharan Africa is by far the most affected region with over 25 million adults and children living with HIV/AIDS.
 

Mr. president,

The AIDS crisis has become so acute that on 10t" January 2000, the United Nations Security Council broke with tradition and discussed the issue of HIV/AIDS. It was the first time that the council has ever deait with a heaith issue in the way it did. AIDS has hence developed into a security threat for Africa.

In addition, Infant and child mortality rates in severely affected countries will rise by 50 per cent more than would have been the case without HIV/AIDS. HIV/AIDS is a significant development calamity that usually affects young adults between the ages of' 20 and 40 years. These constitute the most sexually active as well as the most economically productive segment of the population.

Contributing to the crisis is a conspiracy of silence that shrouds HIV/AIDS, often based on shame or fear of infection which has in-turn fuelled stigmatization and rejection of people living with HIV/AIDS. The unfortunate, senseless conflicts between and within countries in our sub-region also engender instability resulting in the further spread of the HIV infection.

Nearer home in The Gambia an update of HIV prevalence in antenatal women from preliminary data from one of our Sentinel Surveillance sites shows a significant increase. It revealed that the prevalence rate although still relatively low has increased two fold. The current HIV situation coupled with the high prevalence of conventional STI's has potential to fuel a serious HIVIAIDS epidemic in our beloved country if additional measures are not taken to arrest the trend.
 

Mr. President,

Countries such as ours still have a window of opportunity that is growing smaller in diameter by the passage of each day. It is in this context therefore, that the Special Session is timely and relevant and provides the framework for reflection of our efforts at Global, Regional and Country levels. HIV/AIDS issues are adequately addressed in a host of policy documents. The National Heaith Policy, the National Population Policy, the National Youth Policy and Action Programme, the Policy on the Advancement of Women and the National Poverty Alleviation Programme all addressed the issues of reproductive and sexual health including the prevention and control of HIV/AIDS.

The Health for Peace Initiative proposed by my Government was launched in Dakar, Senegal last November. This initiative is about enhancing partnership and peace in our Sub-Region through the promotion of health and the prevention of epidemics. Our initiative, first of its kind in our sub-region focuses on the eradication of polio and improvement of vaccination programmes for childhood disease prevention, prevention and control of HIV/AIDS/STIs, Malaria, Epidemic Disease Surveillance and Disaster preparedness.

The Gambia Government in collaboration with Civil Society Organizations worked tirelessly to educate and create awareness on HIV/AIDS/STIs. Religious Leaders, Community and Political Leaders, Women and Youth groups and Extension Workers were ail sensitized on HIV/AIDS prevention and control.

These efforts coupled with our resolve to strengthen the health care delivery system and Cher related institutions e.g. Department of State for Education, augur well for our fight against HIV/AIDS. However, there are stil) some significant obstacles needing urgent action. The fact that there is stili some who doubt and even question the very existence of HIV, is a major set back. This form of denial only inhibits the maintenance of positive behaviours and attitudes necessary for the prevention of infections and diseases. Denial only breeds complacency with ail its negative consequences.
 

Mr. President,

Another inhibiting factor is the assumption that HIV/AIDS is a matter exclusively for the Department of State for Health. This is largely responsible for the huge gap in our multisectoral response to the epidemic.

Therefore, in order to scale up the National Response to HIV/AIDS epidemic the Government of The Gambia in collaboration with Worid Bank and other partners developed the HIV/AIDS Rapid Response Project (HARRP). A US$15 million Credit Agreement was signed with the International Development Association (IDAIWorid Bank) to implement the HIV/AIDS Rapid Response Project over the next four years. Under this project the Government will address issues related to HIV/AIDS through the appropriate Departments of State, working closely with Civil Society Organizations, and communities. HARRP is an expanded multi-sectoral response to the HIVIAIDS epidemic.

With regards to implementation arrangements, a National HIV/AIDS Council (NAC) has been established under the Office of the President. The President is the Chairman of the Council. Council members are representatives of civil society and the Government in equai numbers. Membership includes Secretaries of the State, NGOs, Civil Society, the Private Sector, Representatives of Religious, Women and Youth groups, as well as, People Living With HIV/AIDS. The project consist of the following component areas:

Component-1 will enhance institutional capacity to develop and implement the HIV/AIDS campaign based on a national strategy and action plan, and its monitoring and evaluation. This component will be the responsibility of the National HIVIAIDS Secretariat.

Component-2 wili provide support to Departments of State to develop their plans and implement HIV/AIDS related activities for the prevention, care and support for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs) and their dependents.

Component-3 will improve the Department of State for Health and Social Welfare's capacity to provide health services related to HIVIAIDS, including testing, counselling, and care of HIV/AIDS patients by strengthening health facilities with the necessary equipment, medicine and staff training.

Component-4 will support community-based initiatives by Civil Society Organizations and other groups for HIV/AIDS prevention, care and support to people living with HIV/AIDS and their dependents. Over 50 percent of the project's resources will be for these activities, underscoring the fact that this component is the most crucial.
A National HIV/AIDS Secretariat (NAS) has been established to perform national level activities such as planning and coordination. It is headed by a Director, who will report to the Council. This Secretariat is not an implementing agency and will not carry-out the activities of the HIV/AIDS Rapid Response Project.

At the Divisional and Municipal level, Divisional/Municipal HIV/AIDS Committees (DACs/MACs) will be established in every Division and Municipality. Members of these Committees will include representatives of NGOs/CBOs, representatives of Departments of State, religious, women and youth groups, and people living with HIV/AIDS. DACs/MACs chairpersons will be selected from among the members for a one-year period, on a rotational basis.

Each DACs/MACs will have a coordination office supported by a HARRP Facilitator who will provide technical assistance. The HARRP Facilitator will be responsible for overall coordination and supervision of HARRP activities at this level.

In the areas of social sector development, the Health, and Education sectors are priority areas for my Government. In partnership with friends of The Gambia such as The Republic of China (ROC) and Cuba, these two sectors experienced accelerated development with the construction and refurbishment of hospitals, health clinics and schools. The renowned expertise of both ROC and Cuba in Health and Development is being transferred through an exemplary framework for bilateral co-operation a laudable example of South South cooperation.
 

Mr. President,

With regard to the World Bank Credit, I referred to earlier on in my statement, we in The Gambia consider it to be a positive investment in the future. Initiatives such as The Gambia's HIV/AIDS Rapid Response Project will stop the further spread of HIV/AIDS, thus contributing positively to our development efforts.

`However, in the spirit of calls for debt cancellation, in order to mobilize resources for HIV/AIDS prevention, let me add my voice to many of the voices from developing countries and Government and Civil Society Organizations for loans like the one in the World Bank Multi-Country HIV/AIDS Programme for the Africa Region (MAP) framework, to be turned into grants.

The Highly Indebted Poor Countries Initiatives (HIPC) should also be accelerated to free up important resources to fight HIV/AIDS. Any delays will inevitably lead to more acute incapacity to respond to the epidemic and devastation. In like manner, we would aiso like to strongly urge the developed countries concerned to meet the 07% GNP target for ODA as well as allocating 0.15% to 0.20% GNP for LDCs as a malter of extreme urgency bearing in mind the serious impact of HIV/AIDS in these countries.
 

Mr. President,

While there may be a need, at the International level, for continued support at the level of our leadership from the Presidency to the legislature, heads of institutions both national and local, youth and religious leaders, there is also need for the active invoivement of People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs) in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
However, this involvement is seriously handicapped by their inability to have access to affordable prevention technologies such as vaccines and microbicides.

Thus we must, as a Global family, provide the drugs and the necessary support to enhance their participation in our preventive efforts.

Whilst I am confident that this Special Session will be crowned with success, I implore ail of use to approach the problem with added candor and openness. Let us highlight ail the concerns and build bridges for a way forward in our henceforth invigorated and joint fight against HIV/AIDS.

We have a good understandïng of the nature of the epidemic and what we need to do to combat it and reduce its negative impact on development. What remains to be done is concerted international effort to win the victory.
 

1 Thank you for your attention.