Our Excellency,
Mr. Secretary-General,
Mr. President,
Distinguished Delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen,  

On behalf of the President of the Republic of Suriname, His Excellency Mr. Runaldo Ronald Venetiaan,  it is  a great honour  to address this extraordinary meeting on HIV/AIDS.

Mr. President,  In the early years of the pandemic, Suriname established a dynamic National HIV/AIDS Programme, with an open attitude towards human sexuality, in all sectors, including the religious leadership and non-governmental partners, with full participation of vulnerable populations. But, as has been the case all over the Caribbean, National HIV/AIDS prevention and control in Suriname has suffered severe setbacks, mainly due to a reduction of external financial support to the National AIDS Programme in the late 1990's.

With political turbulence and a continued deterioration of the economy, during the same period with not in the least, human capacity loss to the private sectors and moving abroad, technical staffing of the Programme has also diminished.  But even in this downward spiral, the basis which has been laid by a strong and vibrant National AIDS Programme in the early 1980s has been replaced by a well-integrated National STI/HIV Programme. With limited resources the programme coordination has been able to maintain and improve a level of general HIV/AIDS awareness, nationwide.

Despite the multi-cultural character of our society with fairly conservative ethnic groups involved - there has been considerable recognition that HIV/AIDS can strike any ethnic group.
Since its inception, the National AIDS Programme has targeted its programmes to vulnerable groups and to the prevention of HIV/AIDS in the larger population through:

• public education;
• school programmes;
• control of Sexually Transmitted Diseases  and
• the prevention of mother-to-child transmission.

There are also a number of NGOs working in the area of HIV/AIDS, such as:

• the Medical Mission, which is undertaking preventive activities in the interior;
• "Maxi Linder Association", which assists sex workers to practice safer sex and supports them socially and psychologically;
• the "Mamio Namen Project" and "Claudia A.", which helps people living with HIV and AIDS,
• "Stichting Lobi", which provides reproductive health services;
• PEP-Sur, which works primarily in the area of youth and HIV/AIDS;
• "Projekta", which advocates for sexual and reproductive health and women's empowerment, and
• the Red Cross, which is responsible for the provision of safe blood.

Regular UNAIDS Theme Group meetings are held to monitor progress of the various initiatives and develop joint strategies.

Mr. President,  These efforts have undoubtedly contributed in maintaining relatively low rates of infection in the general population. However, due to the severe shortage of personnel and financing, the National AIDS Programme has been unable to develop large scale prevention programmes and assess their impact. Moreover, there is a scarcity of resources for training health professionals in the areas of HIV/AIDS counseling, especially pre-test counseling, how to encourage partner notification and how to render support to affected and effected people living with HIV/AIDS, including the early diagnosis and treatment of opportunistic infections.

Another dilemma is the fact that, while support is available to prevent the transmission of HIV from mother to child through the use of Nevirapine therapy, support to prolong the lives of the mothers is not easily available due to the high costs of anti-retroviral therapy for HIV/AIDS. These are the realities we share with other developing countries. These are the problems we are grappling with, on a daily basis.

At present, HIV rates in the general Surinamese population are relatively low, creating a window of opportunity for positive action. Prompt actions taken now, while prevalence is still low, are highly cost-effective both economically and in terms of human security. We know that HIV spreads rapidly once it takes hold of the general population, and in this regard, infection levels of over 20% have been recorded among the country's vulnerable groups. Furthermore, AIDS was the second leading cause of death for males, and the third leading cause for females, in the age group 15 to 44  in 1997 through 1999. It is also growing rapidly among the youth, especially among adolescent girls.

Mr. President,  These trends indicate that behavioral change is not occurring at a rate to show a decrease in HIV/AIDS incidence. This is not unique to Suriname, as with a few exceptions, an upward trend of new HIV infections continues to be reported globally.

In order to build up momentum for HIV/AIDS  prevention and control in Suriname, my country has recently embarked upon the development of a 5 year National HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan for 2003-2007 which will be a truly participatory, consultative process with the input of all sectors of society. This initiative, driven from within and supported financially and technically by UNAIDS, CAREC, PAHO/WHO, with Japanese and Dutch NGO support, will secure a broad-based national response which will not be solely dependent on the Ministry of Health and ad hoc financial inputs alone. 

Human and financial resource mobilization will sustain the efforts to meet the short-term and long-term goals to be set in this National Plan, which will include the Greater Involvement of Persons living with and affected by HIV/AIDS. Through capacity building, with technical backstopping from local and external support, this GIPA strategy will be one of the cornerstones of a successful HIV/AIDS Programme in Suriname.

Through this strategic planning process we will also strive to meet the goals set by the international community at the five year review of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD + 5) in the Special Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1999:

• By 2005, at least 90% and by 2010, at least 95% of young men and women aged 15 to 24 have access to the information, education, and services they need to develop the life skills required to reduce their vulnerability to HIV infection.
• By 2005, prevalence of HIV in the 15 to 24 age group is reduced by 25% in the most affected countries and by 2010, prevalence in this age group is reduced globally by 25%.

Suriname looks forward to increase regional and international assistance in order to sustain and  strengthen its momentum for our expanded response to the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

Thank you, Mr. President