GENEVA, 31 March 2017—UNAIDS welcomes the appointment of David Beasley as the Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP).
“The appointment of David Beasley comes at a critical moment,” said UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé. “WFP’s work to achieve food security is at the heart of global efforts to break the cycle of hunger and poverty and essential to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals which include ending the AIDS epidemic.”
WFP has recently reported that more than 100 million people are facing severe food insecurity around the world and 20 million people in four countries (South Sudan, Somalia, Nigeria and Yemen) are currently facing famine.
During humanitarian crises, access to health care services and availability of medicines for people living with HIV are disrupted, and people find it hard to meet their nutritional needs, further risking their health.
WFP, a UNAIDS Cosponsor, works to integrate food and nutrition within the comprehensive care, treatment and support package for people living with HIV and/or active tuberculosis (TB). WFP also works with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to ensure that food security and related needs are adequately addressed among displaced, refugee and returnee populations. Together they support HIV and TB prevention and care, as well as food and nutrition assistance activities in humanitarian emergencies.
Integrating food and nutrition components in HIV and TB treatment and support packages is critical to ensuring better health outcomes for people living HIV and/or TB. In 2015, WFP’s HIV and TB programmes reached 540 000 people.
UNAIDS
The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
