Hon Deputy Speaker, hon members, I hope you understand, hon Mike, that the ANC is asking for forgiveness. [Laughter.] The aim of the declaration we are debating today was to recommit the member states of the United Nations to redouble their efforts to achieve universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support as a critical step towards ending the global HIV epidemic by 2015. The other objective is to achieve Millennium Development Goal 6, which is to halt and begin to reverse the spread of HIV. For all these to be achieved, we require a renewed political will and ability for those in government to work together with other stakeholders in order to implement bold and decisive actions.
We must start by first recognising that HIV and Aids constitute a global emergency and consequently pose one of the most formidable challenges to the development, progress and stability of any society. This can only be handled through the development and implementation of a comprehensive response, which takes into consideration that the spread of HIV is often a consequence of poverty. Therefore we cannot wage war against HIV and Aids without waging war against poverty and hunger. The solution should be multipronged.
Food security and job creation can play an important role in the fight against HIV and Aids. This is vital because people die prematurely from Aids because, among others, poor nutrition exacerbates the impact of HIV on the immune system and consequently compromises its ability to respond to opportunistic infections and diseases. That's why HIV treatment, including antiretroviral treatment, needs to be complemented with adequate food and nutrition.
The other area which requires attention in the fight against HIV and Aids is the issue of gender inequality and empowerment of women. It is a well- known fact that women and girls are still the most affected by the epidemic, and they bear a disproportionate share of the care-giving burden. The ability of women and girls to protect themselves from being infected is compromised by physiological factors and gender inequalities. These are generally caused by certain backward cultural attitudes, unequal legal, economic and social status, including sexual and reproductive health. That is why prevention and the empowerment of women must be the cornerstone of our response to HIV and Aids. We have to assess whether our national HIV prevention programmes and expenditure reflect this commitment.
I am saying this because the Centre for the Aids Programme of Research in South Africa, Caprisa, unveiled the Caprisa 2004 Tenofovir gel trial results some time ago. The results showed a 39% reduction in new HIV infections and are a critical first step to getting an effective HIV prevention method for women. The most important thing is that women will be able to use the gel without a man's consent.
The most important step required is getting the Tenofovir gel to the public. The role of government is vital in supporting the necessary confirmatory trials and implementation studies. Sufficient funding is required, and for these trials to proceed, Caprisa needs approximately $100 million. Luckily $58 million has been committed. Since the government owns these patent rights, I don't understand why it cannot produce the required funds. I hope that the SA National Aids Council, Sanac, will take this issue up or provide a comprehensive response to the need.
All of us, as members of this august House, need to be concerned that funding devoted to HIV and Aids response is still not commensurate with the magnitude of the epidemic. It seems that this practice is global and domestic. This has been exacerbated by the global financial and economic crisis. That is why there is a need to ensure that prevention, treatment, care and support programmes are adequately targeted or made accessible across the board.
We must also ensure that the health system gets strengthened, particularly primary health care. This will require the integration of our HIV response into it and the speeding up of training and retention of health care workers. [Applause.]