The IPU Advisory Group on HIV/AIDS, set up in 2006 in order to enlist the support of the world's legislatures in the fight against the AIDS pandemic, held its third meeting in Geneva last week. Part of the Advisory Group’s work involves designing information and training materials for members of the world’s legislatures.
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Keen to expand the scope of its work to parliaments worldwide, the Group is organizing the first Global Parliamentary Meeting on HIV/AIDS, to be held in Manila, Philippines, from 28 to 30 November 2007. The aim of the meeting is to bring the work on HIV/AIDS to the full IPU membership and engage the entire parliamentary community. The Manila Meeting will see the launch and discussion of a new guide for parliamentarians. It provides detailed information on various issues that parliaments have to face in this field and proposes best practices.
The Manila event will take up as its leitmotif the question of leadership. This is the theme of World AIDS Day on 1 December, coming on the heels of the Meeting. It will also be looking at universal access and the thorny question of affordability of drugs. This issue arose from the first field visit made by the Advisory Group to Brazil in June this year. The Brazilian Government has taken a pioneering stand in negotiations with the pharmaceuticals manufacturers, and the Global Meeting will discuss an IPU position paper designed to help parliaments legislate in this difficult area. Meanwhile, the next field visit is being planned to the Russian Federation, a country that is grappling with the devastating AIDS epidemic.
