During a visit to Canada, on 28 November UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé met with members of the Government of Quebec, members of parliament and civil society at the National Assembly of Quebec.
In meetings with the Quebec Minister of Health, Gaétan Barrette, and the Deputy Minister for International Relations and the Francophonie, Jean-Stéphane Bernard, Mr Sidibé underlined that it is important that UNAIDS’ work be aligned with that of the Quebec Government and stressed the need to tailor the response to HIV in accordance with the needs of the country or region. He also spoke about the urgent need to make HIV prevention more effective and the importance of investing in HIV prevention and reducing the number of new HIV infections.
Mr Sidibé also discussed Quebec’s AIDS response and visited Point de Repères, a community-based organization that advocates for harm reduction. He met with leaders from MIELS-Québec, a community-based organization working for more than 30 years with people living with HIV, and Ruban en Route, a not-for-profit organization providing prevention education programmes designed to reduce sexual risk behaviours.
During meetings with members of Quebec’s Parliament, including with Jacques Chagnon, President of the National Assembly and President of the Parliamentary Assembly of La Francophonie, Mr Sidibé emphasized the important role that parliamentarians play in the global response to HIV. He also stressed that parliamentarians are critical to advancing the vision of ending AIDS by 2030 through their leadership, advocacy role and ability to authorize and oversee spending on AIDS.
“The National Assembly of Quebec is a vital ally for social justice and to guarantee the right to health for all. Together we can end the AIDS epidemic by 2030.”
Michel Sidibé UNAIDS Executive Director
“The National Assembly of Quebec is pleased to contribute, to the best of its ability, to the exchange of information and experiences on best practices in the response to HIV through the Parliamentary Network for the Fight Against HIV/AIDS, which was created by the Parliamentary Assembly of La Francophonie.”
Jacques Chagnon President of the Quebec National Assembly and President of the Parliamentary Assembly of La Francophonie, Canada
“In the framework of the 90–90–90 targets, Quebec has mobilized and made a lot of effort. Although the last percentages are the most difficult to reach, we are on the right track. We can count on invaluable partners in this regard, particularly from community organizations, as demonstrated by our recent collaboration in the implementation of supervised injection sites in Montreal.”
Gaétan Barrette Minister of Health and Social Services, Quebec, Canada
