Speech
Remarks by Ambassador Joseph A. Mussomeli at the Conference on the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief
Durban, South Africa
June 11, 2006
Cambodia has the highest HIV prevalence rate in Southeast Asia. Cambodia also has, I believe, the most dramatic success story for reducing its prevalence rate. In less than a decade Cambodia has nearly halved the prevalence rate, from 3% in 1997 to 1.6% in 2006.
There are many reasons for this remarkable success, but one primary cause has been the Government of Cambodia’s extraordinary pragmatism. And I mean pragmatism in at least three ways. First, pragmatic in realizing early on and not trying to deny or hide like other countries that it has a serious HIV/AIDS problem. Pragmatic also in embracing strategies based on “what works” rather than on what is more politically, culturally, or religiously palatable. And finally, pragmatic in recognizing that it lacks sufficient resources to combat this disease on its own.
This pragmatism has been complemented by the corresponding willingness of various donor countries in conjunction with international and local NGO partners to work closely and cooperatively with the government to ensure a comprehensive and efficient program to combat HIV/AIDS, including prevention, care, and treatment.
Because Cambodia’s public health sector does have admittedly limited capacity, it doesn’t try to do everything. Instead, it focuses its resources almost exclusively on clinical service delivery.
Non-governmental organizations, therefore, play a crucial supporting role. In addition to providing essential outreach and community-based services to people living with HIV/AIDS and orphans, local NGOs are “bridges” that link people living with HIV/AIDS to clinical care and treatment services offered through the “Continuum of Care,” Cambodia’s comprehensive HIV care model.
We believe our investment in creating selected Cambodian NGOs, and building the organizational, human, and technical capacity of these local organizations--rather than focusing exclusively on US-based NGOs--has paid off, enabling these local partners to make significant contributions to national coverage and serve as key players in Cambodia’s HIV/AIDS response.
In turn, these Cambodian NGOs are building public sector capacity through support of government planning, coordination, and monitoring of HIV/AIDS interventions, and are transferring managerial and technical skills to the public health sector.
Finally, these same NGOs, supported by the USG, are leveraging HIV/AIDS program funds from other bilateral and multilateral donors, including Global Fund monies, to complement our investment by expanding geographic coverage and services offered.
A good example of the success of indigenous organizations is that of the Reproductive Health Association of Cambodia (“RHAC”). The Royal Government of Cambodia has over 100 VCCT (voluntary confidential counseling and testing) sites, while RHAC has less than 15. But, RHAC conducts over one-third of all VCCT consultations in the country.
Another example of the excellent service coverage provided by our Cambodian NGO partners is the Khmer HIV/AIDS NGO Alliance, or “KHANA,” which accounts for 47% of all home based care teams in Cambodia, and provides care and support services to 57% of all persons living with HIV/AIDS in Cambodia.
To sum up, the remarkable willingness of the Cambodian government and our Cambodian NGO partners, such as RHAC and KHANA, to work closely and cooperatively together has been critical to the continued success of Cambodia’s fight against HIV/AIDS.
Representatives from KHANA and RHAC will be present at the meeting this week. If you are interested in learning more about their success and how the USG investment helped build their capacity, we hope you will take the opportunity to meet with them.