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06 April 2004
Secretary Powell Calls HIV/AIDS Mankind's Greatest Threat
Announces 50 percent increase in funding for Haitian clinic
HIV/AIDS is the greatest threat to mankind, killing 8,000 people every day, according to Secretary of State Colin Powell.
In April 5 remarks at the Gheskio clinic in Port-au-Prince Haiti, Powell said the Bush administration is doing everything it can to attack the HIV/AIDS pandemic, including working with the United Nations to create the Global Health Fund and crafting an emergency program that will allocate $15 billion to fight the disease worldwide over the next five years.
Powell thanked the Gheskio clinic for its efforts, and said the United States will continue to support the clinic's vital work. To that end, he said, funding for the clinic would increase from $2.1 to $3.6 million during this fiscal year.
Following is a transcript of Powell's remarks at the clinic:
(begin transcript)
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 6, 2004
REMARKS
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell at the Gheskio Clinic
Port-au-Prince, Haiti
April 5, 2004
SECRETARY POWELL: Thank you very much, Dr. Pape. It is a great pleasure for me to be here at Gheskio and to thank the members of your staff for the remarkable work that they are performing for the people of Haiti.
You quoted me correctly. I do believe that HIV/AIDS is the greatest threat of mankind today, the greatest weapon of mass destruction on the earth today: killing 8,000 people every day.
President Bush focused on this problem at the very beginning of his administration. And President Bush charged me and Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson, and all the other members of his cabinet, to do everything we could to expand our programs and to attack this pandemic. We had bilateral programs for many years, usually with USAID and a particular institution in the country. You have been the beneficiaries of our support for many years. But you are now also being supported by funds from the Global Health Fund that we worked with Secretary General Annan to create a few years ago. So all resources will be coming to you from the Global Health Fund.
And the president's emergency program which will give $15 billion to the world over the next five or so years to fight this terrible disease, funds from that program will be coming to Haiti in the near future as well. I am pleased to announce the increase of 50 percent in funding that we will be providing to your facility -- from $2.1 million up to $3.6 million in this fiscal year. And I know the money will be put to good use.
You have an established track record. I can see from all the people who are here today that they believe in you and they believe in what you are doing. They are coming here to be helped, and you are helping them. Through testing, through training, through education, through counseling, through the provision of anti-retroviral drugs, you have a complete program here that means so much to the people of Haiti.
And I just want to let you know that the United States will continue to support you in your vital work.
And I wish you every continued success.
Thank you.
(end transcript)
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
