Zeda Rosenberg, CEO of IPM, seated center-right, attends the G8 Parliamentarians Conference in Berlin, May 2007
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IPM’s ultimate goal is to deliver safe and effective microbicides to women in developing countries as soon as possible. But this objective cannot be achieved without the political will, cooperation and help of many others. IPM is, therefore, committed to creating the most positive and receptive environment possible for the development and introduction of microbicides.
To this end, IPM serves as a global advocate for microbicide development to foster and sustain political and financial support for this new and promising HIV prevention technology. By educating policy makers and opinion leaders worldwide, a powerful case for investment in microbicide research and development is being built, as well as support for policies that will facilitate rapid access for those at greatest risk of HIV infection: women in the developing world.
Highlights of IPM’s global advocacy efforts include:
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Outreach at G8 Summits: IPM has been actively involved in raising the profile of microbicides during the Group of Eight Summits, which are annual forums for heads of state from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, United Kingdom and United States where major economic and political issues are discussed and acted upon.
In 2005, IPM joined forces with the Global Campaign for Microbicides and the Alliance for Microbicide Development to advocate for microbicides during the Gleneagles Summit hosted by the United Kingdom. IPM also collaborated with other product-development partnerships on advocacy towards commitments to investing in research and development for global health. As a result of these efforts, G8 leaders recognized the role of microbicides as part of a comprehensive response to HIV/AIDS in their communiqué on Africa. They also called for advance purchase commitments and other innovative financing tools to encourage increased investment in research and development for global health.
These commitments were reiterated in subsequent Summits at St. Petersburg, Russia (2006) and Heiligendamm, Germany (2007). |
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Reviewing the Declarations of the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS): In 2008, IPM undertook a campaign to raise awareness about new prevention technologies in advance of the 2008 review of the UNGASS Declaration of Commitments on HIV/AIDS.
IPM, in conjunction with the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, Global Campaign for Microbicides, the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Initiative and UNAIDS, organized a meeting to brief representatives of almost 100 countries on the role of new prevention technologies in the response to HIV/AIDS. IPM also circulated a brief to key stakeholders. The 2008 UN Secretary-General report, issued in advance of the review, discussed the state of microbicide research. Learn more about the meeting proceedings here.
In 2006, during the five-year review of the UNGASS Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS, IPM prepared a two-page brief to illustrate how and why member states can and should provide crucial support for investment in microbicides. As a result of this and additional advocacy efforts from other organizations, investment in microbicide research was recognized in the final political declaration on HIV/AIDS as a necessary part of a comprehensive and sustainable response to HIV and AIDS.
During the 2005 UNGASS review, IPM and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) hosted a briefing where UN Secretary General Kofi Annan joined the call for greater commitment of resources to microbicide research and testing and underscored the importance of ensuring rapid access to a microbicide or AIDS vaccine as soon as one becomes available.
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IPM and UNAIDS: IPM is a convening agency of the UNAIDS Global Coalition on Women and AIDS (GCWA), an initiative which seeks to highlight the special vulnerability of women and girls in the epidemic and supports female-controlled HIV-prevention methods. Through this association, IPM reaches a global and strategically important audience and uses the platform to spotlight the urgent need for safe and effective microbicides. |
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2008 IPM Publication – Microbicides: An Essential HIV Prevention Strategy for Achieving the Millennium Development Goals: In this report, IPM demonstrates how microbicides could help to halt the HIV/AIDS epidemic and reverse its devastating human and economic toll on women in developing countries. Without support for new HIV-prevention technologies like microbicides, the paper argues, the global community will be unable to attain the United Nation’s |
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