GENEVA, 6 April 2012—The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) welcomes the appointment of Ms Ertharin Cousin as the Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP). Ms Cousin brings more than 25 years of national and international non-profit, government, and corporate leadership experience focusing on hunger, food and resilience strategies.
“I congratulate Ertharin Cousin on taking this leadership role at WFP,” said UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé. “Food security plays a critical role in reducing HIV vulnerability and uptake of antiretroviral treatment. Together, we will work to end both—AIDS and food insecurity.”
WFP is a Cosponsor of UNAIDS and leads the programme’s efforts on dietary and nutrition support in the AIDS response. WFP’s HIV programmes focus on improving HIV treatment success through food and nutrition support, as well as mitigating the effects of HIV among food-insecure individuals and households.
