AMBASSADOR'S SPEECHES

SPEECH OF AMBASSADOR AUBREY HOOKS AT THE PRESS CONFERENCE ANNOUNCING PEPFAR GRANTS

The Ivoirian Minister of Health Dr. Albert Toikeusse Mabri thanks Ambassador Hooks for his dedication to the fight against HIV/AIDS in Côte d’Ivoire, as fellow ministers and grantees look on.  (Photo: Yacouba Soro/US Embassy)

September 27, 2005

Mr. Minister of Defence,

Mr. Minister of Health and Population,

Mr. Minister of Education,

Mr. Minister of Agriculture,

Mr. Minister of Solidarity,

Mr. Minister of AIDS,

Valued Partners,

Honored Guests,

AIDS knows no race, economic class, or nationality.  It takes no sides in the present political conflict.  It is blind to differences of ethnicity and age.  In short, it kills without prejudice.  Therefore, so too must we form our armies against AIDS across political, national, racial, and religious lines.  If we let our differences divide us, if we think for a moment it is someone else’s disease, it may well tomorrow take those closest to us.  If we as Americans do not take action to stop the spread of AIDS at home and elsewhere, we too will soon be confronted by a calamity as great as that which afflicts Africa today.

So we have decided to take action.  We have chosen not be weakened by this disease, but to build strong collaborations across boundaries that had previously divided us.   Reaching across the globe, the United States through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, has sought to build partnerships that will be supported by unprecedented levels of aid and assistance.  The American Emergency Plan is a fifteen billion dollar program working in more than 100 countries, while directing additional resources to fifteen of the worst affected nations, including Cote d’Ivoire.  This year alone we will inject $42 millions into this country, to rapidly scale up the indigenous capacity of Cote d’Ivoire to treat those who have been infected and affected by this disease.  We are also working hard to prevent another generation from being infected with this devastating illness, while taking into care hundreds of thousands of orphans and vulnerable children who are impacted by the ravages left by HIV/AIDS.

Today, we open three new fronts in the war against this plague.  We will take our campaign to the North and to the West of the country to reestablish health care systems and essential infrastructure to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS in these conflict affected areas.  We are opening another front in rural areas, where messages of prevention and the availability of treatment facilities are oftentimes scarce and inadequate.  Finally, working hand in hand with the Ministry of Defense, we will turn one of the most vulnerable groups for acquiring HIV/AIDS into ambassadors of positive change.  All told, this represents a commitment of over seven billion CFA over the next five years.

You, our partners in this process, will be equipped with the most modern resources, technology, and information in the field, to effectively and efficiently stem the tide of HIV/AIDS in this country. We are entrusting you with the expectations and trust of the American and Ivoirian people to bring hope, spread knowledge, and provide care to those who need it most.  You were selected because you are the most able in the field and I know you will prove yourselves to be models both for this nation and the world.  We are all behind you.

Through the energetic work of Dr. Monica Nolan and her team we have built important partnerships with key Ivoirian ministries, who have all proved to be unwavering in their commitment and support for this program and the fight against AIDS.  I thank you for your tremendous work to date and look forward to our continued close cooperation and coordination in this fight.  Your presences here today are another powerful symbol of your dedication to the health of your country.

The American Emergency Plan is a tremendous testament to the cooperation between our two countries.  We have learned much from each other and we can do much together.  We are united.  We are dedicated.  We will prevail. 

I thank you.