A Letter from Our President

Dear colleagues, partners, and friends-

A big thank you to everyone who attended Fast-Track Cities: Innovations and Financing for Ending AIDS , hosted by The Center for Global Health and Diplomacy (GHD) in partnership with UNAIDS on June 7th. The moderating skill of UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador (China) and Special Contributor to China Central Television, James Chau, and the transcendent leadership of UNAIDS Executor Director, Michel Sidibé, were key in making this event such a success.

Our global strategies-from the Sustainable Development Goals to the Global Health Security Agenda-increasingly call for dialogue and partnerships that cut across sectors to share lessons learned and engage in concerted action. I am excited that Fast-Track Cities brought together such a diversity of global health leaders for a discussion on HIV/AIDS and beyond.

From the private sector, we heard about some of the innovations that are already transforming the HIV/AIDS response-from Andreas Raptopoulos of Matternet Inc. how drones are changing the landscape of health care in resource-limited settings; from Geng Le of Blue how mobile technology is altering the way we deliver health communications to MSM; from Deborah Dugan of (RED) about the collective difference we make even through small contributions; from Hamadoun Toure of Smart Africa how information communication technology is ushering the continent into a new phase of internet connectivity and sustainable growth; and from William O'Leary of Microsoft how data collection and analysis are paving new roads for health care.

Of course, we know that expanding these innovations and reaching the last mile will only be possible with the continued leadership of government and civil society actors. To that end, we were privileged to hear from key figures including Minister Raymonde Goudou Coffie of Côte d'Ivoire, Snehal Ambekar of India, Cynthia McCaffrey of UNICEF, Celina Shocken of Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon, Bethany Young Holt of IMPT, and Amy Boldosser-Boesch of MSH. Helping to place their comments in the context of private sector engagement were Anil Soni of Mylan, Pooja Pathak of Alere, and Nicole Denjoy of DITTA. We are particularly thankful for the unsurpassed dedication of these many leaders to women's health, not only for HIV/AIDS specifically but also for development broadly.

We would be amiss if we did not also pay a special thanks to lifelong champions for HIV/AIDS including Luiz Loures and Jan Beagle of UNAIDS, Gary Cohen of GBC Health, Helen Lee of the University of Cambridge, Monique Gueguen of MSF, and Sharon Lewin of the Doherty Institute. From the private sector to academic circles, their works continues to breathe life into the goals and innovation that define our HIV/AIDS response.

We were especially pleased to feature many innovations for HIV/AIDS at our marketplace exhibit. With displays from iVEDiX, Orange Labs, Diagnostics for the Real World, Ltd., MSF, Dure Technologies, IAPAC, CAMI Health, Microsoft, Siemens, Alere, MedTech Ltd., and Matternet Inc., we got a real sense of the ever-evolving nature of our response technologies.

Finally, we join those in attendance to offer our sincerest thanks to some of the special guests who led the interactive luncheon following the innovation marketplace. The comments by Minister Isaac Folorunso Adewole of Nigeria, Minister Alex Segbefia of Ghana, Minister Ruxana Glavan of Moldova, Minister Molotsi Monyamane of Lesotho, and Ndaba Mandela of Africa Rising gave real hope that despite the continued challenges we face in achieving the Fast-Track targets, we are on the right foot.

Sincerely,

Joanne Manrique

Fast Track Recap

UNAIDS High-Level Meeting
June, New York, New York

On June 7th, GHD and UNAIDS hosted a special event - Fast-Track Cities: Innovations and Financing for Ending AIDS, which featured UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador (China) and Special Contributor to China Central Television, James Chau, and UNAIDS Executor Director, Michel Sidibé, leading a series of discussions on the future of global AIDs efforts. Fast-Track Cities brought together a diverse array of global health leaders to explore innovative approaches to achieve the United Nation's ambitious goal of ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030.

Focusing on specific technologies that are making an impact, speakers included Andreas Raptopoulos of Matternet Inc, who spoke about how drones are changing the landscape of health care in resource-limited settings and Geng Le of Blue on how mobile technology is altering the way we deliver health communications to MSM. Deborah Dugan of (RED) discussed the collective difference we make even through small contributions; Hamadoun Toure of Smart Africa explained how information communication technology is ushering the continent into a new phase of internet connectivity and sustainable growth; and William O'Leary of Microsoft on how data collection and analysis are paving new roads for health care. Recognizing that expanding these innovations and reaching the last mile will only be possible with the continued leadership of government and civil society actors, Minister Raymonde Goudou Coffie of Côte d'Ivoire, Snehal Ambekar of India, Cynthia McCaffrey of UNICEF, Celina Shocken of Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon, Bethany Young Holt of IMPT, and Amy Boldosser-Boesch of MSH all discussed the role of civil society and government.

Helping to place their comments in the context of private sector engagement were Anil Soni of Mylan, Pooja Pathak of Alere, and Nicole Denjoy of DITTA. Lifelong champions for HIV/AIDS including Luiz Loures and Jan Beagle of UNAIDS, Gary Cohen of GBC Health, Helen Lee of the University of Cambridge, Monique Gueguen of MSF, and Sharon Lewin of the Doherty Institute elaborated on key aspects of the HIV/AIDS response.

Complementing the rich discussions, GHD and UNAIDS hosted a special Innovation Marketplace which featured health technolgoies and innovations for HIV/AIDS from iVEDiX, Orange Labs, Diagnostics for the Real World, Ltd., MSF, Dure Technologies, IAPAC, CAMI Health, Microsoft, Siemens, Alere, MedTech Ltd., and Matternet Inc. The marketplace helped attendees get a sense of the ever-evolving nature of our response technologies.

Finally, GHD and UNAIDS hosted a number of special guests at an interactive luncheon following the innovation marketplace. Remarks were given by Minister Isaac Folorunso Adewole of Nigeria, Minister Alex Segbefia of Ghana, Minister Ruxana Glavan of Moldova, Minister Molotsi Monyamane of Lesotho, and Ndaba Mandela of Africa Rising. All speakers gave real hope that despite the continued challenges we face in achieving the Fast-Track targets, we are on the right track.

Side Events at the 2016 World Health Assembly

On May 25th, 2016, the Center for Global Health and Diplomacy hosted a high-level discussion on Improving Health System Resilience After Ebola along side the 2016 World Health Assembly. The conversation aimed to identify new and effective ways to address emerging health threats in the wake of the Ebola outbreak. 

During the first of two panel discussions, Dr. Luis Loures, Deputy Executive Director of UNAIDS and Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) and Dr. Awa Marie Coll-Seck, Minister of Health and Social Action in Senegal, provided their experience and insights on what the global health community has learned from Ebola. Both Dr. Loures and Dr. Coll-Seck stressed the great importance of effectively engaging communities and the need for stronger public-private partnerships. "The evidence is clear," Dr. Loures stated, reflecting on the negative effects the Ebola crisis had on the progress that had been made in Africa with respect to AIDS "to respond to AIDS [we need to] bring people to test [and] engage communities. If you engage communities you have better results." Dr. Coll-Seck echoed the need for community involvement by highlighting the local nature of response to the Ebola epidemic, "We think that Global Health Security is global, but for me it is local," Dr. Awa stated, "[With disease outbreaks] things [move] very fast. [You] need the infrastructure, equipment, supply chain, and surveillance system. When you need to wait four to five months to determine what is happening, when a disease arrives and kills all health workers, which [already] are not enough, you can understand what the future of the country [might be]." In addition to surveillance, a strong supply chain management system begins at the community level. Dr. Coll-seck noted that in order to head off an epidemic we must be able to effectively distribute products and medication to the last mile. And quickly. "You can't have a stronger partner than the community," Dr. Coll-Seck urged, "We need to work together. We can't do anything without them."

The second panel, moderated by Dr. Victor Dzau, the President of the National Academy of Medicine, and Dr. Ilona Kickbush, the Director of Global Health Programme and the Center for Global Health Geneva, addressed the progress that has been made since four reports came out on pandemic response. Panelists included Dr. Naoko Yamamoto, the Assistant Minister for Global Health Ministry of Health Labor in Japan, Dr. Tim Evans, Senior Director of Health, Nutrition, and Population Global Practice at the World Bank, Peter Sands, former Group CEO of Standard Chartered PLO and current Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, and Arnold Bernaert, Head of Global Health and Health Care Industries at the World Economic Forum.

The event concluded with an announcement from Peter Singer of Grand Challenges on new funding awards for innovative Zika research. To watch the video of this panel, please click the link below:

Spring Spotlight:
Sangeeta Nambi

Sangeeta Nambi is a 2016 Global Health and Diplomacy Fellow at GHD. Ms. Nambi share her expertise on issues involving innovative technologies, infectious disease, and the intersection of health security and health communications. Prior to joining GHD, Ms. Nambi worked on several special projects at the intersection of culture-related health behaviors, transnational crime, and crisis preparedness. Ms. Nambi received her B.A. in Health Administration and Policy from University of Maryland Baltimore County and her M.S. in Biohazardous Threat Agents and Emerging Infectious Diseases from Georgetown University.