 | Representatives of the World Bank participated in nearly 40 separate events at the XV International AIDS Conference in Bangkok, July 11-16, 2004. As part of the program, on July 14, 2004 World Bank Vice President for Human Development, Jean-Louis Sarbib met with civil society representatives participating in the Conference. The in-depth discussion lasted about 1.5 hours. |
CSO participants were as follows (several African representatives were invited, but were unable to attend, given the many competing events): Raoul Fransen, Young Positives Alvaro Bermejo, Executive Director and CEO, International AIDS Alliance Anya Sarang, Central and Eastern Europe Harm Reduction Network (CEEHRN) Andreas Berglof, Ombudsman, Swedish Association for HIV-Positive People Emmanuel Trenado, Program Officer, AIDES, and active member of European Aids Treatment Group Richard Weaver, Policy Officer, Tear Fund Kieran Daly, Policy Advisor, International HIV/AIDS Alliance Julian Hows, GNP Positive representative and Interim Regional Coordinator for the European Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS Julia Cabassi, Project Manager, NGO HIV/AIDS Code of Practice Project, IFRC Ashok Prabath, Hope worldwide, India, Chief Programs Officer for Delhi, Nepal and overall finance Gary Jacques, Hospital Director, Center of Hope, Sihanouk Hospital, Cambodia
Mr. Sarbib described the changing landscape of WB-civil society relations in recent years, noting that the discourse with non-governmental organizations has moved beyond criticism of structural adjustment policies to constructive exchanges around issues such practical ways of improving local health services for the poor and scaling up the response to the AIDS epidemic. Acknowledging that mistakes were made in Africa during the early days of the AIDS epidemic, Sarbib stressed that the current strategy of UNAIDS and other major donors, built about the 'Three Ones' principle and giving equal weight to prevention, treatment and care is more effective than past policies. He described how the Multi-Country AIDS Program in Africa and the Caribbean allows for NGOs to tap direct funding without having the government as an intermediary, noting that early indications are that the 50 percent of funds allocated directly CSOs under the MAP are delivering real results, in some cases faster than the other half directed to governments. The Strategic Policy Workshop on AIDS in Windsor in early June, was mentioned, and the fact that several of the representatives present had attended it. It was agreed that follow up on the specifics of that event would be dealt with separately, since the facilitator's report had only just been circulated that week. Youth and gender have emerged as important themes in the fight against AIDS, Jean-Louis Sarbib noted. He commended Raoul Fransen's speech at the plenary and said he'd like to hear from Raoul and other Youth leaders in the coming months. Mr. Sarbib explained that his is taking the lead on a youth initiative driven by World Bank President, James Wolfensohn and that the World Bank is eager to mainstream young people in its HIV/AIDS operations. The CSO representatives were quite knowledgeable about how the World Bank operates, so comments and inputs ran the gamut from a concern about the "objectification" of People Living With HIV/AIDS to frustration with government corruption in India, to outrage over Sweden's criminalization of injecting drug users. Julian Hows questioned why the World Bank seems to invite the same NGOs to informal consultations repeatedly without a clear agenda or indication of where the discussions/consultations are leading. Jean-Louis Sarbib noted that he had much to learn from specialized NGOs working on AIDS and that familiarity and regular dialogue would pave the way for more substantive collaboration in the medium to long run. Several representatives suggested to Jean-Louis Sarbib that the World Bank should communicate to NGOs more often, more clearly and more directly about its policies related to HIV/AIDS. Greater coherence and transparency are needed in civil society dialogue and engagement on health as well as other development issues. NGOs can contribute directly in areas where they have a comparative advantage, such as the design of technical assistance tailored to meet the needs of community based organizations. Indeed, Kieran Daly noted that the OED study of WB AIDS assistance found that technical assistance needs were often underestimated. Groups such as GNP Positive, Young Positives, CEEHRN and the International HIV/AIDS Alliance are keen to create or strengthen networks of NGOs with shared alliances. The successful advocacy in Bangkok on behalf of injecting drug users needing access to ARVs is an example of effective networking across regions (the Thai Drug Users Group received help from the International Harm Reduction Network and CEEHRN, among others). The issue of monitoring and evaluation was raised several times and several CSOs had attended the World Bank's Bangkok session on Preliminary results of the Operations and Evaluations Department's evaluation of the Bank's HIV/AIDS assistance. Alvarejo Bermejo asked why the World Bank, with all of its analytical capacity, has not yet undertaken a study to identify the best community-based work on HIV/AIDS, conveying surprise that so little has been done to measure how NGOs (especially those whom we are funding) are doing. In reply, Jean-Louis Sarbib agreed that monitoring and evaluation are essential, explaining our role in heading up GAMET(Global HIV/AIDS Monitoring & Evaluation Support Team) and adding the Operations Evaluation Department study on the MAP will be ready by December 05. Julia Cabassi described the new Code of Practice Project she is helping to manage. If enough NGOs sign-on, the code will provide a unified guideline of best practices, principles and minimum standards to guide the services, programs and advocacy work of groups delivering prevention, treatment and care. It also aims to address the challenges of scaling up action and the accountability of CSO work in HIV/AIDS. The representatives working in India and Cambodia expressed frustration over government instransigence or passivity in the fight against AIDS. Red tape in India makes it very difficult for NGOs to deliver treatment, prevent and care. In Cambodia, where Dr. Gary Jacques sits on the Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) board, only NGOs are delivering ARVs, prevention and care, with the government on the sidelines. Ashok Prabath of Hope Worldwide's India branch wants to know more about the World Bank's evolving AIDS activities in India and Phil Hay, World Bank Communications Advisor for the Human Development Network, promised to hook him up with the appropriate people. Jean-Louis Sarbib thanked everyone for an illuminating conversation and promised to stay in touch. More Information:
The World Bank at the XV International AIDS Conference Bangkok 2004
World Bank HIV/AIDS Page
World Bank HIV/AIDS Activities in the Regions |
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