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19 December, 2000New report shows that the main diseases which cause and perpetuate poverty can be controlled.
USA: A new report, "Health, a Key to Prosperity: Success Stories in Developing Countries," jointly issued today by five United Nations agencies and the World Bank, claims that worsening AIDS, TB and malaria epidemics are not inevitable and shows numerous strategies deployed by several developing countries to successfully fight these diseases and prevent the deaths they cause. The targets for reducing the toll of these illnesses, set by the world's leaders at successive summits over the last year, remain feasible. What is needed are the funds and systems that will enable widespread implementation of actions that have shown to be effective, the report says.
The report contains success stories from 20 different countries, encompassing the widest variety of economic, social and geographic conditions. It shows, for example, how countries like Senegal, Uganda and Thailand have developed strategies which can successfully reduce HIV infection rates, how Azerbaijan and Vietnam have cut in half the number of deaths from malaria, how China, India and Peru have cut TB deaths by half, and how Sri Lanka has drastically reduced maternal mortality.
"The prospects of intervening to prevent death in developing countries have never been better," said Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, director-general of the WHO. "With a concerted effort from the international community, we can turn the promise of these success stories into a reality in the coming years."
The publication of the report comes shortly after a meeting in Okinawa, Japan, on December 7-8, at which the G-8 countries agreed to scale up their global work to fight diseases in the world's poorest countries.
The report contains success stories from 20 different countries, encompassing the widest variety of economic, social and geographic conditions. It shows, for example, how countries like Senegal, Uganda and Thailand have developed strategies which can successfully reduce HIV infection rates, how Azerbaijan and Vietnam have cut in half the number of deaths from malaria, how China, India and Peru have cut TB deaths by half, and how Sri Lanka has drastically reduced maternal mortality.
"The prospects of intervening to prevent death in developing countries have never been better," said Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, director-general of the WHO. "With a concerted effort from the international community, we can turn the promise of these success stories into a reality in the coming years."
The publication of the report comes shortly after a meeting in Okinawa, Japan, on December 7-8, at which the G-8 countries agreed to scale up their global work to fight diseases in the world's poorest countries.