Joint Civil Society Statement for TICAD

“There will be no stability and prosperity in the world in the 21st century unless the problems of Africa are resolved”
-Yoshiro Mori, Former Prime Minister of Japan

“Our work as health practitioners needs a leadership that cares for the health and well-being of the people, a leadership that is always in the front-line of the war against disease, poverty, ignorance and hunger -- the greatest evils affecting our people and delaying our development.”
-Late Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, Former Minister of Health, Federal Republic of Nigeria

We, representatives of African and Japanese civil societies advocating for health, speak with a common voice to the Government of Japan and the co-organizers of TICAD IV.

Our voice speaks for representatives of African people living with and/or affected by HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other related diseases, and burdened by weak and inadequate health systems. We speak for representatives of people of Japan, who are working in solidarity with African civil society, and are concerned with the recent trend of declining international assistance of the Government of Japan.

We call upon the Government of Japan and the TICAD Co-organizers to:

• Reaffirm Japan’s political will to achieve Universal Access to HIV/AIDS treatment, prevention and care by 2010, as once pledged by all G8 countries in St. Petersburg in 2006;
• Redouble efforts towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals and associated global and African targets and initiatives on health, which includes but not limited to the Global Plan to Stop TB (2006-2015), 2010 Roll Back Malaria Goals and the Global Malaria Business Plan, the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS in 2001 , the Political Declaration in 2006 for the three diseases and also the African Union initiatives incorporating and complementing global efforts especially the Africa Health Strategy, Maputo Plan of Action for Reproductive and Sexual Health and Implementation Plan on HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria.
• Create a clear and strategic implementation plan for health system strengthening, as well as support country driven initiatives including Community System Strengthening aimed at attaining Universal Access to essential health services, and take the lead in providing the necessary resources to achieve these targets and goals to realize sustainable essential health service delivery globally.

Africa continues to disproportionately carry the heavy burden of health problems due to; but not limited to weak health systems and shortage of health workers. Trapped by the political and economic policies of the Cold War era that did not take account of Africa’s long term development, African countries were unable to develop strong and sound health systems to protect the most basic of human rights. The AIDS pandemic which hit Sub-Saharan Africa in the 1990’s, was also largely ignored for a significant period, due to “aid-fatigue”, as shown in the declining trend of international aid.
We recognize that TICAD played an essential role during the "lost decade" of the 1990's to facilitate dialogue for Africa’s development, as well as increasing Japanese aid for Africa, making Japan the top donor of many African countries at that time. Furthermore, TICAD created the principle of respecting African ownership. We especially take note of the Action Plan adopted in TICAD II in 1998, which provided the basis for the Millennium Development Goals. These are but few evidence of why we, African and Japanese civil society, hold high expectations that the TICAD process will lead to an improved development process that will truly benefit the people of Africa.

The breakthrough of the G8 Okinawa Summit in 2000 has led to a rapid increase in overall investment for infectious diseases. But it is far from enough, and now in 2008, we still face many challenges. Despite the current myth in global health experts’ debates that "AIDS is overfunded", only half of the resource required to achieving Universal Access by 2010 is available. TB/HIV co-infection is one of the biggest health issues in Southern Africa, where people face the real threat of an MDR/XDR-TB outbreak that can undermine what has already been achieved. We are now aware that African health systems have been systematically weakened in the recent two decades.

Despite such conditions, the people of Africa continued to fight the health challenges by strengthening community responses, giving rise to critical targets such as Brazzaville Commitment on Universal Access to treatment, prevention and care by 2010 set in March, 2006, in the Republic of Congo. Now it is time for donor communities to do their part by investing financial resources to achieve these goals. In order to achieve sustainable progress on health, there must be an end to the exploitation of health workers from Africa. Greater efforts and resources are needed to train and retain health workers to ensure the sustainability of African health systems to deliver essential health services to the African people.

On their own part, African governments must keep their pledge to allocate 15% of their national budgets to health as outlined in the 2001Abuja Declaration of the African Heads of States. Overall scale up to the health investment is crucial to achieving the existing goals and targets, and to create a “vibrant and healthy Africa”.

We, representatives of African and Japanese civil societies believe there are already enough pledges, plans and strategies and ask for funding and implementation of existing ones. We ask for responsibility and accountability. We thank the government of Japan and co-organizers of TICAD IV for their tremendous efforts and urge them to take the responsibility to facilitate multilateral dialogues for African development to achieve health-related MDGs which would ultimately translate to a better world where all the people can have access to essential health services. We can only achieve this when developed nations like Japan commit to and demonstrate the will to fight
HIV/AIDS, TB, Malaria, Maternal and Child Mortality as well as make a commitment for overall scale up of health investment.

The slogan for TICAD IV is “Vibrant Africa: a Continent of Hope and Opportunity”, but a vibrant and healthy Africa can only be achieved through responding to the people’s hope and providing real opportunity through increased funding and implementing commitments to health development.
Signatures
Africa Japan Forum (AJF)
African Council of AIDS Service Organizations (AfriCASO)
African Civil Society Coalition on HIV/AIDS
Africa Public Health Rights Alliance / 15% Now! Campaign
Project RING, Japan AIDS and Society Association (JASA)
Réseau Africain de Personnes Vivant Avec le VIH d’Afrique Centrale (RAP+AC)

CONTACT
Africa Japan Forum (AJF)
Masaki Inaba, Program Director for Global Health
Address: 2nd Fl, Maruko Bldg, 1-20-6 Higashi-Ueno, Taito-Ku, Tokyo 110-0015 JAPAN
Phone: +81-3-3834-6902, Fax: +81-3-3834-6903, E-mail: masaki.inaba@gmail.com, info@ajf.gr.jp

NGO Signatories (As of April 6, 2008)

African NGOs
MIFRO - Missa~o sem Fronteiras, Angola
L' Alliance Burundaise contre le SIDA, Burundi
Burundian Network of People living with HIV, Burundi
ACTWID KONGADZEM, Cameroon
Reseau National Femme et Develppement, Comoros Islands
Ambassadors of CHANGE, Kenya
Health Rights Advocacy Forum, Kenya
Inter-agency Rural Development, Kenya
Kenya AIDS NGO Consortium, Kenya
Stop AIDS In Liberia (SAIL), Liberia
Malawi Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (MANET+), Malawi
World AIDS Campaign, South Africa/Global
Treatment Action Campaign, South Africa
Southern Africa Treatment Access Movement, Southern Africa
Treatment Advocacy & Literacy Campaign, Zambia
Civic Commission for Africa, Africa
International Planned Parenthood Federation Africa Region and its 44 member associations, Africa
Réseau Afrique 2000, West Africa and Burundi
・ Association Nationale de Soutien aux Seropositifs (ANSS), Burundi
・ AMEPOUH, Cote d’Ivoire
・ Association de Femmes Guinéennes pour la lutte contre les Maladies Sexuellement transmissibles et le Sida –
ASFEGMASSI, Republic of Guinea
・ Responsabilite Espoir Vie Solidarite (REVS+), Burkina Faso
・ Ruban Rouge, Cote d’Ivoire
・ Association African Solidarite (AAS), Burkina faso
・ Kenedougou Solidarite, Mali
・ Renaissance Sante Bouake (RSB), Cote d’Ivoire
・ Association de Recherche Communication et Accompagnement a Domicile des Persones Vivant avec le VIH
(ARCAD/SIDA), Mali
・ Espoir vie Togo (EVT), Togo
・ Mieux Vivre avec le SIDA (MVS), Niger
・ Lumiere Action, Cote d’Ivoire
・ Association Laafi la Viim (ALAVI), Burkina Faso
・ Alternatives Cameroun, Cameroun
・ Colibri, Cameroun
・ Association des Femmes Actives et SOlidaires (AFASO), Cameroun
・ Association de Soutien et d'Entraide des Personnes Vivant avec VIH (ASEPVV), Tchad
・ Association des Jeunes Positifs du Congo (AJPC), Congo Brazzaville
・ Congrès National des Jeunes Femmes Vivant avec le VIH (CNJFV+), Centralafrican Republic
・ AFASAMAS, Mali
・ Yeewu-Yeete, Senegal

Japanese NGOs
The Baobab Association, Japan
Health and Development Service, Japan
Hunger Free World, Japan
Japan AIDS and Society Association, Japan
Japanese Organization for International Cooperation in Family Planning, Japan
Space Allies, Japan

NGOs Supporting the Statement
The Danish Family Planning Association, Denmark
AIDES, France
Action against AIDS Germany, Germany
German Foundation for World Population, Germany
Global Union AIDS Programme, France/Global
International Federation of Medical Students' Associations, Global
World AIDS Campaign, the Netherland/Global
Osservatorio Italiano sull'Azione Globale contro l'AIDS, Italy
Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition, Jamaica/Caribbean Region
Positive Malaysian Treatment Access & Advocacy Group (MTAAG+), Malaysia
World Population Foundation, the Netherlands
Willing Ways Project of Sadaqat Clinic, Pakistan
Physicians for Human Rights, USA
International Women's Health Coalition, USA
Results Education Fund, USA

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