Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono officially opened the ninth International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific, held in Bali last month.
Mr Yudhoyono spoke of the importance of regional and international cooperation in the fight against AIDS, enforcing the congress’ theme- Empowering People, Strengthening Networks.
‘If we work together and work harder, I am certain that together we can achieve universal access for AIDS prevention, care, support and treatment by next year,’ he said.
Indonesian First Lady, Ani Yudhoyono also gave a speech at the opening of the congress as part of her role as the Indonesian AIDS Ambassador.
It was revealed to the over 3,000 delegates from 65 countries that only 25 percent of the 1.7 million people with HIV/AIDS in the Asia-Pacific region were receiving adequate treatment.
While Mr Yudhoyono praised efforts made to combat the spread of HIV in Indonesia, there are great discrepancies in treatment rates between Asian countries.
Countries such as Thailand, Cambodia and Laos have been able to treat 80 percent of HIV-positive people, which is the universal access target, while 10 countries have only managed to treat 10 to 15 percent of people living with HIV.
Executive Director of the Australian Federation of AIDS Organisations (AFAO), Don Baxter attended the congress and is calling on the Australian Government to provide funding for regional HIV prevention measures tailored towards gay men and MSM.
‘The latest figures outlined in Bali demonstrate unambiguously how current funding is totally out of proportion to the epidemiological reality that confronts us,’ he said.
‘Male-to-male sex will contribute more than 50% of new infections by 2020 unless AusAID and others get beyond their recent commendable scoping studies and invest in substantial programs now.’
According to Mr Baxter there has been a significant increase in the number of Australians contracting HIV while traveling or working in high-prevalence countries of Asia.
‘Particularly in Bangkok or if they go to Yangon in Burma because the prevalence rate there among gay men is 30 percent- so that means every third gay man you meet, one of them is going to be positive.
‘I think gay men traveling in the high prevalence countries need to be very careful.’
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