what is the Stop AIDS Campaign?
The national Stop AIDS Campaign is led by a
coalition of various charities and groups who have come together to fight for an
increased awareness of and action for HIV/AIDS across the world. Students Partnership Worldwide (SPW), a
charitable organisation who place volunteers in various community projects in
Africa and Asia, have teamed up with the multi-agency Stop AIDS Campaign to set
up a student orientated branch of the campaign, the Student Stop AIDS
Campaign .
The Student Stop AIDS Campaign consists of a network of Student Stop AIDS Societies , of which Bristol Stop AIDS Society is one.
The Bristol Stop AIDS Society aims primarily to raise awareness, amongst Bristol University students, of HIV/AIDS in the UK and Worldwide. As a movement driven by young people, Bristol Stop AIDS Society acts as a vehicle for development, education, leadership skills, and advocacy for better public policy around HIV/AIDS. By mobilising and connecting young people across the UK and internationally, Stop AIDS Societies seek to build a new social movement of young people as the key agents of change.
Some basic facts on HIV/AIDS (Data from the World Health Organisation)
• Nearly 40 million people live globally with HIV. In 2 years, 6 million of those are expected to have died.
• In 2004, 4.9 million people became newly infected with HIV, and 3.1 million people died from AIDS
• Sub-saharan Africa has the highest number of HIV positive individuals, where 29.4 million people are living with HIV.
• The introduction of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) in 1996 transformed the treatment of HIV and AIDS, improving the quality and greatly prolonging the lives of many infected people in places where the drugs are available. But in low- and middle-income countries—and especially in sub-Saharan Africa where the epidemic is most severe—only a minute proportion of HIV-positive individuals have access to the drugs. Cost has been a major obstacle, although the price of ARVs has fallen dramatically in recent years. Other obstacles to access include inadequate health infrastructure and lack of people with the relevant skills and training to provide the treatment
• '3 by 5' is the global target for the UN and WHO to provide 3 million people by 2005 living with HIV/AIDS in low and middle income countries with life-prolonging antiretroviral treatment (ART) by the end of 2005.
