International organizations have continued to work with Vietnam in fighting HIV/AIDS by financial and technical support over the past time. HIV/AIDS prevention work in Vietnam has been hailed as the epitome of enormous achievements other nations should strive to emulate at the 20th international AIDS conference (IAC) ongoing in Melbourne, Australia from July 20-25. Reports showed that in spite of immense difficulties, Vietnam has for the fifth consecutive year made tremendous progress towards the goal of reducing numbers of new infections, full-blown AIDS cases, and deaths. Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long held sidelines meetings with leaders of numerous international organizations, including Francoise Barre-Sinoussi, President of the International AIDS Society; Mark Dybul, Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFFATM), and representatives of the World Health Organization (WHO). The leaders expressed their admiration for Vietnam’s accomplishments in HIV/AIDS prevention and pledged continued financial and technical support for the Southeast Asian country. Mark Dybul revealed that the GFFATM was highly impressed with Vietnam’s HIV/AIDS programs and specifically acknowledged he would use his best efforts to support Vietnam’s application for $158 million funding from the GFFATM. For her part, Francoise Barre-Sinoussi pledged to finance a major Vietnamese project to improve testing capacity for early detection of HIV and pledged to wholeheartedly vote in favor of granting the country $158 million non-refundable aid from the GFFATM. (Vov.vn July 24)
