A two-day meeting of the executive council of the International Drug Purchase Facility (UNITAID) is currently taking place in Brasilia.

Founded in September 2006, UNITAID forms part of the Action against Hunger and Poverty promoted by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and other world leaders since 2003. A total of 27 countries participate in the initiative, while the executive council consists of representatives from the five founder members – Brazil, Chile, France, Norway and the United Kingdom – along with representatives from Africa, Asia, international foundations, civil society, and the World Health Organization.

In little more than eighteen months UNITAID has made significant progress towards its two principal objectives: the reduction in the price of drugs used to treat AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, and the widening of access to treatment.

Achievements so far include a 40% reduction in the price of anti-retroviral medicines for children; the treatment of more than 100,000 children with AIDS in 38 developing countries; reductions of between 25% and 50% in the price of second-line anti-retroviral drugs, and their provision to around 56,000 patients in 20 countries; emergency malaria treatment for more than 1.4 million people in Liberia and Burundi in 2007; and anti-tuberculosis medicines for 600,000 children in 40 countries. Overall, 53 countries have received UNITAID assistance in their fight against AIDS, 23 against malaria, and 58 against tuberculosis.

Brazil was an active participant in the creation and implementation UNITAID, and makes a substantial contribution (US$10m) to its annual budget.

The current UNITAID meeting in Brasília, the first in a venue other than the initiative's Geneva headquarters, is an opportunity to gather even greater international support and to reaffirm the importance of innovative development financing mechanisms in the efforts to combat hunger and poverty, and to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

The opening ceremony was attended by the Brazilian foreign minister, Celso Amorim; the health minister, Jorge Temporão; Luiz Dulci from the office of the President of the Republic; the president of UNITAID and ex-foreign minister of France, Philippe Douste-Blazy; and the executive secretary of the initiative, the Brazilian medical professional Jorge Bermudez.

UNITAID website

Source: Ministry of Foreign Relations and Embassy of Brazil in London