His Excellency, Mr the Chairman
and distinguished delegates

    It is my pleasure and honour, on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Mauritius, to address this most distinguished gathering of delegates at the 26th Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly. It is a privilege, for me, on behalf of my country, to contribute to the debate which brings together such distinguished national delegates from every corner of the world for the cause of humanity. I tender the personal apologies of the Prime Minister of Mauritius, who has not been able to attend this important gathering.

    We are here, because we all share profound concern for the sheer scale of the human impact of HIV/AIDS pandemic. But this is of little value unless it is coupled with a well tuned capacity for taking practical steps to provide support for those affected, and to arrest the spread of the disease.

    The purpose of this Special Session of the UN is to reach an Agreement on a Declaration of Commitment. This Commitment will outline priority areas for action. We are here therefore:

. to agree on the most cost effective ways and means to reverse the spiraling rates of HIV infection;

. to agree to the best means for the clinical and personal care of patients with HIV/AIDS;

. to agree on how those with HIV/AIDS can best be supported so that they can continue to live as normal ? life as possible;

. to agree on how best we can meet the very tragic needs of those orphaned by AIDS.

    I firmly believe that The Declaration of Commitment towards which we are working, will strengthen bonds among nations, communities and all partners who are represented here today at the global and national levels, to offer ideas and models of good practice for a common goal.
The statistics in respect of deaths caused by AIDS since the 1980's, those infected by the HIVAID virus the actual and would be AIDS orphans are nothing less than alarming. However, this is not just a healthy problem for Africa, it is a social and economic bomb.

    AIDS is killing ten times as many people as war, sabotaging economic development, destroying the social fabric of society and creating a generation of orphans. AIDS is reversing decades of health gains and economic and social progress.

    Due to its chronic nature and associated life threatening conditions, health care costs for HIV-infected persons and AIDS patients are tremendous, putting a heavy burden on governments in Africa which contains many of the poorest countries in the world, least able to protect themselves.

    Despite considerable efforts made by SADC, to address the HIV-AIDS pandemic and its effects, HIV infections and morbidity caused by AIDS, continue to increase at an alarming rate, with a drastic impact on the regions' socio-economic development.

    The SADC Heads of State Communiqué 2000 in addressing the HIV-AIDS pandemic states "there can ............. be no meaningful development in the SADC Region as long as HIV-AIDS is not addressed on an urgent and emergency basis." This pandemic is cutting off the very roots of social and economic progress.

    Two of the key resolutions of the SADC Health Ministers' meetings on HIV-AIDS held in Gaborone must be sustained help to those afflicted, affordable medicines and affordable cost-effective prevention programmes.

    I am pleased to note that the pledges of African Heads of State and Government, made at the Abuja Special Summit in April 2001, which include -

    The setting up of a target of allocating at least 15 percent of their annual national budgets to fight the HIV-AIDS epidemic, and

    Increased complementary international assistance to countries whose resources are limited,

have been included in the Draft Declaration of Commitment on HIV-AIDS.

    I am also pleased to inform that, the Indian Ocean Commission, which groups countries of the Indian Ocean Region, namely Mauritius, Madagascar, Comoros, Seychelles and Reunion Island has included HIV/AIDS in its agenda as a priority.

    Distinguished delegates, it is befitting, for me, on such an occasion, to present the HIV-AIDS profile of my country on this platform. The first case of HIV-AIDS was registered in Mauritius in 1987. Up to date 312 cases have been officially reported, of which 69 are non-residents. Among the 243 residents, 68 have died.
By 1987, the Ministry of Health and Quality of Life was already implementing a National AIDS Control and Prevention Programme which comprised many strategies aimed, at reducing the incidence of HIV infection. Much emphasis has been laid on educational activities which, in fact, constitute the backbone of the HIV Control Programme. These activities aim at promoting safer sex behaviour among the population and among high-risk groups like sex workers.

    As regards mother to child infection, a programme for the prevention of HIV transmission has been initiated since 1998. All pregnant women attending antenatal clinics are counseled and are made to undergo blood tests subject to their consent. Besides, a protocol has been established for HIV positive pregnant women to be provided with antiretroviral treatment (AZT) during pregnancy and delivery.

    The newborns are also treated with AZT for 6 weeks after birth and are given free formula milk (as breastmilk transmits HIV), for a period of two years. We have found that this prevention protocol cuts down the risk of transmission from 25% to less than 5%.

    With a view to having a more concerted and global approach in the fight against AIDS, key ministries, NGO's and the civil society have come together to develop a Multi Sectoral National Strategic Plan with the assistance of UNAIDS.

    The low prevalence rate of HIV/AIDS cases registered in Mauritius can be attributed to the prevention programmes and of other factors, such as free education from primary to tertiary level, free and easy access to medical care and poverty alleviation. We need to ensure that this low prevalence does not create complacency in the population.

    In view of the alarming trend of the HIV infection world-wide, Mauritius has the potential to become ? high risk country, more so, given the changing lifestyle and the mobility of the population to and from other countries. Over 700,000 tourists visit Mauritius every year. We just cannot afford to neglect our HIV/AIDS programme because of its apparent success.

    The Government of Mauritius is further proposing to set up an inter ministerial committee on HIV/AIDS to be chaired by the Prime Minister or Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance for the implementation of a National Strategic Plan which has already been drafted according to our needs.

    Political will and leadership are of utmost importance to the success of a prevention programme. Unless political, social and religious leaders are convinced of the need to urgently and imperatively address the issue, no programme will have the desired impact, however well intentioned it may be. It is significant that in Mauritius we had a National Action Control and Prevention Programme, supported by all our community leaders, even before any case of HIV/AIDS was reported in the country. This gave us a good start and we have to continue and consolidate on that.

    Despite the availability of life-prolonging drugs, such as anti-retroviral therapy, accessibility to these drugs is restricted, because of their prohibitive cost. Here, I wish to make an earnest appeal to the pharmaceutical industry, specially, to those firms engaged in the manufacture of anti-retroviral drugs, to change their fly-by-night mentality, and to revise the prices of these life-prolonging drugs, for the sake of humanity.

    Distinguished delegates, we are gathered here, as members of one and the same community dedicated to alleviate the sufferings of those whose lives have been debilitated with HIV/AIDS. Health being a fundamental human right, we should always remain strenuous defenders of patients rights, which include rights to care and treatment.

    Most distinguished delegates, the 26th Special Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations is the clarion call for nations as a whole, to be on the full alert on the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The Declaration of Commitment should be a sacred agreement among nations. There are rays of hope in the horizon. Consolidated preventive intervention programmes are showing good signs of success. In some of the African countries, the rate of HIV infection is being controlled and has a promising tendency to decline further. But the battle is not yet won. There is a long way to go.

    To conclude, I wish on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Mauritius, to commend to this Assembly, the Declaration of Commitment.

    Thank you for your kind attention.