Credit: UN Photo/Marie Frechon
The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) have published On the front line: A review of programmes that address HIV among international peacekeepers and uniformed services 2005–2010. This report outlines the progress made and the obstacles encountered in implementing Resolution 1308 and will serve as background when the Security Council meet on 7 June to deliberate progress towards the resolution.
In 2000 when the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1308 it was a watershed moment in the global AIDS response. It was the first time in its history that the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution addressing a public health concern and its implications for international peace and security.
There are clearly new opportunities for consolidating the progress and addressing new challenges. The imperative to further explore the relationship between AIDS and insecurity is also clear
Michel Sidibé, UNAIDS Executive Director and Alain Le Roy, Under-Secretary-General for United Nations Peacekeeping Operations
The resolution recognized that societal violence and instability exacerbate the spread of HIV and, left unchecked, could pose a threat to international peace and security. It called on UNAIDS and DPKO to develop HIV-specific strategies and programmes within the context of United Nations peacekeeping operations.
The report notes that significant progress has been made in providing access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support services for all sections of society—including peacekeepers and other uniformed services personnel. Nevertheless, during the past 10 years, the evolving landscape of crises and conflicts throughout the world has reshaped these challenges and underscored the need for a new response to AIDS in the context of United Nations actions to help prevent conflict, ensure security and build peace.
Writing in the introduction, Michel Sidibé, UNAIDS Executive Director and Alain Le Roy, Under-Secretary-General for United Nations Peacekeeping Operations note: “There are clearly new opportunities for consolidating the progress and addressing new challenges. The imperative to further explore the relationship between AIDS and insecurity is also clear.”
