AIDS scientists kick off conference

TORONTO – Microsoft Chief Bill Gates, who contributed millions of dollars to fight AIDS, has said that the search for a vaccine to prevent the deadly disease would be his foundation’s top priority.

He was speaking at opening ceremony of the biggest ever global meeting here on HIV and AIDS, where more than 24 000 delegates, including a high level team from India led by health minister Ambumani Ramadoss, are participating. Gates, who recently announced he would step down from his day-to-day duties at Microsoft and devote more time to philanthropy, called on “all actors, particularly governments, to dig deep and make this a high budget-spending priority”.He highlighted the plight of African women who face demands for sex from an infected husband or boyfriend, noting that the only means for prevention abstinence or a condom lay with the man.The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has given USD 1,9 billion to support HIV-AIDS projects worldwide since 1995 and announced last week a US$ 500 million grant to fight AIDS.Actor Richard Gere, former US President Bill Clinton, executive director of UNAIDS Peter Piot and international AIDS experts from various parts of the globe are also attending the six-day conference which began on Sunday.This year marks the 25th anniversary of the first reported case of human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV.Since the beginning of the pandemic, nearly 65 million people worldwide have been infected with HIV and AIDS has killed more than 25 million people.There are still an estimated 11 000 new HIV infections and 8 000 deaths every day, most of them in sub-Saharan Africa.Nampa-PTIGates, who recently announced he would step down from his day-to-day duties at Microsoft and devote more time to philanthropy, called on “all actors, particularly governments, to dig deep and make this a high budget-spending priority”.He highlighted the plight of African women who face demands for sex from an infected husband or boyfriend, noting that the only means for prevention abstinence or a condom lay with the man.The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has given USD 1,9 billion to support HIV-AIDS projects worldwide since 1995 and announced last week a US$ 500 million grant to fight AIDS.Actor Richard Gere, former US President Bill Clinton, executive director of UNAIDS Peter Piot and international AIDS experts from various parts of the globe are also attending the six-day conference which began on Sunday.This year marks the 25th anniversary of the first reported case of human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV.Since the beginning of the pandemic, nearly 65 million people worldwide have been infected with HIV and AIDS has killed more than 25 million people.There are still an estimated 11 000 new HIV infections and 8 000 deaths every day, most of them in sub-Saharan Africa.Nampa-PTI

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