30^ème

UNAIDS PCB Meeting

The 30th board meeting agenda included a wide variety of issues – from financial updates to a closer look at strategic investment. Discussions over decision points arising from this meeting were again dominated by the difficulty of some governments speaking about key populations, sexual and reproductive health rights, intellectual property and trade related agreements and criminalization issues. This was especially evident in the agenda items that dealt with civil society (NGO report) and legal issues (follow up to the last board meeting’s thematic session on HIV and the law). At one point in the meeting, the refusal of a minority of countries to support the right to justice of key populations caused the NGO Delegation and civil society Observers to stand in solidarity as the incoming Africa Delegate took the floor. He reminded the board that key populations exist in all regions of the world and that they remain essential partners in an effective and ethical HIV response.