Comments on Draft GAA African Office

[Guest guest]

Chatinkha:

Thanks for your leadership in getting these ideas on paper. This is an excellent start-up piece for considering what the African office would do. Do you have any ideas about staffing? priority activities? and preliminary 3 month workplan? At this point in time, I believe that we must take these ideas into operational workplans as soon as possible. I also believe that the GAA Africa Office is critical for the success of the GAA.

As part of the GAA discussions, we've been proposing to implement the following campaigns. You may want to consider ideas on how the Africa office could be established to support these campaign......... I've added some possible activities for the GAA Africa Office:

$3-BILLION-PER-YEAR-FOR-AIDS-IN-AFRICA CAMPAIGN

This campaign will focus on raising $3 billion per year for Africa in grant resources to prevent HIV transmission, provide care and support for people with AIDS, and to respond to the needs of children orphaned by the epidemic. The goal is to raise the needed resources from both public and private sources. The World Bank AIDS Trust Fund is an initial mechanism targeted to manage the funds that are raised by this campaign. Funds will be transmitted to Africa through direct service grants to governments, NGOs, and civil society.

--GAA Africa Office could coordinate the involvement of African leaders from governments and civil society to participate in this campaign;

--GAA Africa Office could plan and implement campaign events, press releases etc

--GAA Africa Office could identify key partners (ie networks, organziations etc) from civil society that can participate in the campaign.

--GAA Africa Office needs to have state of the art telecommunications and a the best press officer on the Continent to make that the word gets out!!

GLOBAL-TREATMENT-ACCESS CAMPAIGN

In partnership with the transnational Global-Treatment-Access Campaigns, GAA will undertake efforts to rapidly expand access to essential medications for HIV and other HIV-related diseases. Most people with HIV/AIDS in economically disadvantaged countries do not have access to treatment of opportunistic infections or access to antiretroviral drugs. We will build on the recent progress that has been made to expand access to key pharmaceuticals in third world countries by scaling up the effort and increasing access to generic drugs to counter the rapid spread of the epidemic.

--Africa Office could plan and implement campaign events;

--Africa Office could support the establishment of Treatment Action Campaign in more countries. They currently exist in South Africa and Kenya. What about other key countries like Nigeria.

--Africa Office could collect unique--independent watchdog--information about African participation in TRIPS and UNAIDS access to drugs initiative

--Africa Office could monitor the World Bank Multicountry Loan Program and determine if drugs are being procured and provide field experience on how this be operationalized

DROP-THE-DEBT-FOR-AIDS CAMPAIGN

In partnership with the transnational Jubilee2000 campaigns and other advocacy networks, the GAA will advocate for the rapid acceleration of debt relief and complete debt cancellation in developing countries heavily affected by HIV/AIDS.

--GAA Africa Office could plan and implement campaign events;

--GAA Africa Office could coordinate with the Jubilee 2000 affiliates in approx 20 African Countries

--Jubilee 2000-UK is planning a regional Debt and AIDS Workshop sometime in 2001. This event could be cosponsored with GAA. This could be a critical

--Define possible activities in relationship in key event in the attached timeline, ie OAU summit on AIDS; G7 summit etc.

Also, You make want to consider how the GAA could should operationalize these activities in relationships to the the following key dates during 2001, that we're working in the attached timeline.

Thanks again for this work, and I look forward to moving forward with you on this.

Yours,

Zeitz

[AIDS treatment] Draft GAA African Office

The concept of forming the GAA was derived from a need to have an Africanoriented responce towards HIV/AIDS. It is obvious that, Africa on its ownwill never be able to get the exploding pandemic under control to the statethat the USA or Europe has managed to do without appropriate funding. It isalso obvious that the resources needed to be mobilized have to come from thewellwishers in the USA and Europe, who not only have the capacity andcapability to do so, but need to be made aware and given the will to do so.Needless to say there are many unilateral attempts being made to addressthis tragic problem. Most of these attempts are being driven by differentneeds, the need for humanity, need for duty, need for morality to prevail,need for capitalising on it etc. What is now needed is to unify theseneeds, remove the atificial needs which are wasting not only precious time,but lives and put into action our committments and rhetorics.As much as there has been all these efforts and more, all iniatives anddiscussions have been derived from the outside Africa. African have usuallybeen told what to do and how to do it. GAA was formed to bridge these gapsand most importantly give the African people a voice so as to directresponces according to their needs, not the donors requirement. It is veryimportant to understand that many projects and programs have failed for lackof this collaboration. It is only common sense to know that thetrickle-down approach that has been in use usually does not take intoaccount the enviromental, cultural, social and political situations of therecepient people. Needless to say, short trips to Africa and the affectedareas/communities cannot give one a true prespective of their real needs.Creating an African office will allow Africans to fully participate inmatter concerning their lifes. The usual " colonial " syndrome of dictatingwhat Africans need because the funds are coming from " us " has never work andis a waste of time and energy on but sides. It is therefore, natural thatfor our efforts to have impact on the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa, we haveto involve full participation of Africans, the infected and affectedpopulance.Functions of the OfficeAn Africa office will collect the voices from all African civil societies,government, communities and merge them into action oriented movements andactivities.The office will coordinate implementations of programs/projects afterfunding is secured in the USA and Europe.The office will also coordinate responses in the form of grants, services,activities, events etc.It will be through this office that partnership will be fostered between allthe global organizations, civil societies, individual, governments, agenciesetc. and African communities.This office will also be able to monitor progress and comply records,thought reporting of the impact the GAA is having for the benefit of allinvolved, donors and African communities.It will be able to do impact assessments, evaluations, design programs, actas an information and resource coordinator among other duties that it willbe call upon to do.The office will also be able to facilitate any arrangements for those whowish to travel to Africa and do some volunteer work in any field regardingHIV/AIDS.The office will also try to coordinate partnership between medical personalfor exchange of information and skills building.Most important for GAA, will be to be able to have different partners in thealliance have the freedom to work in an environment where all are viewed asequal partners with equal importance to ensure that the real aim for thisorganization is materialized, that is to stop the rampant killings of humanfrom HIV/AIDS, regardless where the funding is coming from. To do this, anAfrican office is imperative. Without one, it is business as usual.The Set-UpThe office will require to have a headquarters located in African countryagreed upon by the working committee. This office will have paid staffedand volunteers accordingly. From this location, all African oranizationswill be able to use this as communication bases. The extent and size of theoffice will be determined by the need and available funding. This officewill not onky depend on funding from the GAA, but will also creative incomegenerating activities to help run some of its programs/projects. It willalso be in full and good standing with the International Agencies (e.g.UNAIDS, UNPFA, USAID, Save The Childrens, Action Aid etc)so as to access allthe possible funding available. This outline of the African Office is a draft. Please feel free to makecomments and changes as you see fit. Welcome also are contructivecriticism.Chatinkha Nkhoma

[Guest guest]

Thanks for your comments. Can we all work on the issues that you raised like staffing etc. I believe much of that information will depend on the scale of activities the office will be performing and also that will determine the size. Most importantly, the amount of money allocated to this office/s.

Maybe we can discuss this on the teleconference that you are planning.

Chatinkha

[Guest guest]

> From: Chatinkha Nkhoma <chatinkha@...>

> An Africa office will collect the voices from all African

> civil societies, government, communities and merge them into action oriented

movements and activities.

>

> The office will coordinate implementations of programs/projects after funding

is secured in the USA and Europe.

I think this is critical. Even when groups like Health GAP

have been successful in securing US policy changes, an

activated country-level grassroots response is the

difference between success and failure. The Africa office

should have African organizers and trainers who can help

form and/or strengthen independent activist formations in

key nations.

I also think that a subtext here should be formalized:

leadership from and Africa office should be driving the

relevant policy goals of the GAA.

Zeitz wrote:

> $3-BILLION-PER-YEAR-FOR-AIDS-IN-AFRICA CAMPAIGN

>

....The World Bank AIDS Trust Fund is an

> initial mechanism targeted to manage the funds that are

> raised by this campaign.

Question/comment:

Does diplomacy require that funds raised be channeled into

the still somewhat controversial World Bank administration

of the trust fund? With lots of respect for the original

drafters, the degree of inclusion, transparency, and

participation of civil society in oversight of Trust Fund

moneys remains an unknown.

Is it possible to move forward on this without involving the

fund for the time being, until we have a better measure of

the Bank vs. the People? (please forgive and indulge this

simplistic shorthand!)

>

> GLOBAL-TREATMENT-ACCESS CAMPAIGN

I am working to provide more program substance here over the

next week.

I will also propose a vision to start discussion on a Geneva office.

Separately:

The timeline document is very useful as a framework for

action.

I am glad that Zeitz will be adding the WHA as another

critical date.

Also, information on the details and prospects for the new

debt/AIDS bill is needed. This could be an important piece

to mobilize around.

--

pdavis@...

_____________________________________________________

ACT UP Philadelphia

215.731.1844 Voice

215.731.1845 Fax

215.474.6886 Home Office

[Guest guest]

I kind of agree with the concern expressed by . To a large

extent, inclusion of such agencies as the World Bank etc as working partners

in this allaince will only limit our mission. I am very apprehensive about

their agendas. Everything they touch turns to... you shit (excuse my

language). We must not lose our objective by all means. Money is important

but saving lives is our mission.

Chatinkha