What Roles Do Governments Play in the Fight against HIV/AIDS? How Big Are They?

In the fight against HIV/AIDS, there are many points-of-view as to who plays the bigger role. In reality governments and non government organizations play very big and important roles, measuring who plays the biggest role might be difficult to determine.

Some governments such as the United States and the French governments have been known to be the biggest financial contributors to the fight against HIV/AIDS, but I will also be researching further to find out which countries have contributed the most in the past couple of years, and what type of contributions they have made such as financial contributions, summits, rallies, among others.

HIV/AIDS threatens the development and propensity of countries around the world. It impacts heavily on individual’s ability to be economically productive and the expenses incurred in treating HIV/AIDS treatment have been overwhelming.

This is especially so in developing countries where pressure on the available health centers has mounted significantly as more people get admitted for treatment of HIV/AIDS related complications. Life expectancy in most countries has gone down with up to twenty years highly decimating the workforce.

The need to promote change in behavior in order to reduce occurrence of the pandemic and the ever increasing need to come to the aid of the victims is therefore inevitable. Approaches meant to fight discrimination and stigma faced by HIV/AIDS patients are also essential.

It is almost impossible for private organizations to take these responsibilities mostly due to their limitation in funds. Governments have therefore taken center roles in the fight against HIV/AIDS establishing organizations to fight the pandemic while funding other private organizations to promote the fight against HIV/AIDS. There is therefore a dire need to fight HIV/AIDS and best suited to lead in these campaigns is the government.

The governments mostly cannot participate in the rallies, seminars and summits held to promote AIDS awareness. It is through funding of the organizations involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS that it usually offers its support.

Analysis

According to the UNAIDS World AIDS Day report, many countries have taken the initiatives of reviewing their national strategies to address HIV/AIDS with the growing danger of the pandemic. Due to this, new infections have decreased from three million in 2001 and 2.7 million in 2007. The death rate of patients with HIV/AIDS has also reduced significantly as a result of the availability of anti-retroviral treatments provided by most governments.

Governments especially members of the United Nations have been actively involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS following the Millennium Development Goals set up during the Millennium Summit. The governments are required to make strategies that address the prevention, accessibility of medical care, prevention of mother to child and enhancement towards research and cure of the disease.

Capable governments have also been requested to make contributions into the global fund which will assist in the fight against HIV/AIDS in developing countries. Developing countries too have realized the impact of HIV/AIDS on their economies and they are coming up with policies to address the pandemic.

The challenges however arise where the governments are willing but they cannot afford to fund the required projects. Global organizations such as the UNAIDS, IMF, World Bank and USAID are chipping in to assist the developing countries.

Developed countries and especially America have been on the fore front in fighting HIV/AIDS in low and middle income countries especially in Africa where the pandemic has hit hard. These countries that provide funding for the low and middle income countries are known as donor countries.

To further demonstrate the efforts that governments are putting in the fight against HIV/AIDS and to justify their roles in the fight, this study makes use of three countries that have made very significant efforts. The United States has been ranked top in the fight against HIV/AIDS especially due to its involvement internationally.

Canada and France have also displayed a similar passion to contribute to the fight against HIV/AIDS through participation in various campaigns and through funding of organizations involved in HIV/AIDS control and prevention.

The United States has been very keen on the fight against HIV/AIDS making it a top priority in its national policies. The government funds both private and public organizations in the country to fight against HIV/AIDS. Apart from supporting the fight against HIV/AIDS within the country, U.S also funds international bodies in the fight against HIV.

The U.S government through its numerous partnerships with organizations in Sub-Saharan Africa has been actively involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS. US made the largest contribution in Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria with their contribution making up about 33% of the total contribution.

The U.S has mostly made use of PEPFAR and USAID to make their contribution in the fight against HIV/AIDS both in America and other parts of the world.

The government of the United States made a breakthrough initiative when it came up with the United States president’s Emergency Relief for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). This organization has played significant roles in the world through funding of projects of improvement of treatment and care of HIV patients.

More details about PEPFAR will be described below. US have also been fighting the pandemic through USAID which is the principal government agency that extends help to other countries. At least $7 billion has been spent by USAID to fight HIV/AIDS. USAID is one of the partners of the President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief in the U.S.