“Getting on track: CND’s role in meeting commitments of 2021 Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS” event on the margins of the 2023 CND Thematic Discussions

24 OCTOBER 2023 - Hybrid - The event “Getting on track: CND’s role in meeting commitments of 2021 Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS” took place on the margins of the 2023 Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) Thematic Discussions. It was hosted and organized by the Permanent Mission of Brazil to the International Organizations in Vienna, in collaboration with the Group of Friends of HIV Prevention Among People Who Use Drugs and People Living in Prison Settings (currently chaired by the Permanent Mission of Belgium), the UNODC Civil Society Group on Drug Use and HIV, and the UNODC HIV/AIDS Section.

The event looked forward the 2024 midterm review of progress and challenges since adopting the 2019 Ministerial declaration on strengthening our actions at the national, regional and international levels to accelerate the implementation of our joint commitments to address and counter the world drug problem. In particular, it aimed to raise awareness of existing international commitments proclaimed in the 2021 Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS, confirmed in the UN General Assembly, which have in turn informed the targets set in the 2021-2026 UNAIDS Global AIDS Strategy.

Jean- Luc Lemahieu, Director of the Division for Policy Analysis and Public Affairs, UNODC, moderated the meeting and introduced the speakers. Ambassador Nelson Antonio Tabajara de Olivieira, Permanent Representative of Brazil to the International Organizations in Vienna, and Ambassador Caroline Vermeulen, Permanent Representative of Belgium to the United Nations in Vienna, made opening remarks and expressed their countries’ support and examples. Jamie Bridge from the Secretariat of UNODC Civil Society Group on Drug Use and HIV also welcomed those in attendance and highlighted the relevance of this fruitful exchange.

Global updates about the progress made and the remaining challenges were presented by Christine Stegling, Deputy Executive Director, Policy, Advocacy and Knowledge Branch, UNAIDS; Judy Chang, Executive Director, International Network of People who Use Drugs (INPUD); and Fariba Soltani, Chief, HIV/AIDS Section and Global AIDS Coordinator, UNODC. Detailed references to available data were made in their presentations. Judy Chang stressed the importance of considering the impact of high-level resolutions on the lives of people who use drugs. On behalf of community, she stated that “decisions made in Vienna at the CND directly impact our lives, but often it feels very disconnected from our lives and lived realities. The world of drug policy has often been described as a parallel universe to Geneva, which centers around human rights and health”.

Country examples of progress were showcased by Dr. Draurio Barreira, Director of the Department for HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Viral Hepatitis and Sexually Transmitted Infections, Ministry of Health of Brazil; Ms. Nguyen Thi Minh Tam, MD, PhD, Head, HIV Prevention Department, Vietnam Authority for HIV/AIDS Control, Ministry of Health of Vietnam; Ms. Tinatin Sagymbaeva, Head of the medical and psychological assistance to minors (adolescent) of the Republican Center for Psychiatry and Narcology under the Ministry of Health of the Kyrgyz Republic; and Dr. Ruth Laibon Masha, Chief Executive Officer, National Syndemic Diseases Control Council, Ministry of Health, Republic of Kenya. The presentations demonstrated that considerable progress has already been made in preventing and treating AIDS through interventions and policies based in scientific evidence, human rights, and public health with respect to the key populations of people who use drugs and people in prisons in Brazil, Vietnam, Kyrgyzstan and Kenya.

Closing remarks were delivered by Mr. Paul K. Nana Sei Osei, Deputy Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of Ghana to the UN Offices in Vienna, who highlighted that “many of those most vulnerable are still being left behind, and we all carry responsibility for putting the response to HIV and related comorbidities back on track”. This event represented an important opportunity to address the challenges facing the global response to HIV, among people who inject drugs and people in prisons and other closed settings, as these key populations still have much higher rates of HIV prevalence as compared to the general population.

Evidence- and human rights-based, people-centred and context-specific integrated services and health responses, including HIV prevention, treatment, care and support and harm reduction services such as opioid agonist therapy, needle and syringe programmes, and overdose prevention and management, remain crucial to an effective response to HIV among people who use drugs and people in prisons and other closed settings.

The event represented a key moment to reflect on progress towards the targets of the Global AIDS Strategy – especially those related to harm reduction, community-led responses, stigma and punitive legal environments. These include the Global AIDS Strategy and the 2021 Political Declaration, that outline the 10–10–10 Targets which aim to reduce restrictive legal and policy frameworks, gender-based inequalities and stigma and discrimination.

Click here to access the recorded video of the event.

United Nations

Office on Drugs and Crime

“Getting on track: CND’s role in meeting commitments of 2021 Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS” event on the margins of the 2023 CND Thematic Discussions