CYCONLINE HOMEPAGE

Hi everyone,

The theme of this year's World AIDS Day is Keep the promise! In line with key activities that have taken place during the year 2006, I am proposing that the theme for youth be Keep the promise: it time to deliver! It will be quite interesting to see RYC members engage in activities to mark the day at the national level. During the World AIDS Day in 2004, I featured on National Live TV programme to discuss key issues with youth development and AIDS, in 2005, I was part of a big event marked by the President of Nigeria in Abuja.

Interestingly, on World AIDS Day, I will be travelling to Lusaka. I am hoping to feature on a Live TV show to raise issues with youth development in Zambia. Zambia has a record achievement in youth development programming particularly in the areas of sexual and reproductive and by extension HIV/AIDS. Zambia's youth population is 78 percent and the government has recently put in place a policy to allow girls who become pregnant in school to return after they have had the babies.

In the midst of high level poverty in rural communities, Zambia is making great strides and setting examples for other countries to follow.

During the week leading upto WAD, I will be having meetings with important Zambian's including the Lord Mayor of Lusaka and the 1st Vice President of Zambia. I am hoping that all of us will use the World AIDS Day to raise the issues affecting youth in our countries and call for action. Five years after the gound breaking event at the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS, there is a need for strong action. In 2004, we reviewed the UNGASS Declaration, and young people called for increased political commitment, space for youth participation, adequate youth friendly services and stronger financial commitment. In 2001 African Union Leaders made a commitment to allocate 15 percent of their budget to the development of the health sector, five years after, only Botswana has met the mark. Many countries are lagging behind in the commitments that they have made in continental and international documents and development frameworks.

In 2006, African Union Heads of States reaffirmed their commitment in their Abuja Call for Universal Access to HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria services by a United Africa by 2010. Now they need to live upto these promises begining from 2007. The national budgets for health need to reflect these and the political commitment needs to be stronger. See one news article about MY Presidenthttp://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/12/20041202-3.html.

Keep the promise: its time to deliver!