22 June 2011, International Property Watch:

The head of Geneva-based UNITAID, an innovative drug purchasing system for the global poor, will leave the post this month.

The Malian Presidency will host the 9th plenary session of the Leading Group on Innovative Financing  for Development  in Bamako, on 24 and 25 June. 61 countries, numerous international organizations, foundations and NGOs are expected to attend.

On  the occasion of the Leading Group meeting, Mali will announce  its  second annual contribution to UNITAID , amounting to  US$ 305 000 , in addition to the US$ 402 000 disbursed in 2010.  These funds were collected through  an  air solidarity levy  applied to all flights leaving Mali and represent a revolutionary way of raising money for public health, especially in a developing country.

July 2011 - The resolutions adopted by the 14th UNITAID Executive Board meeting are listed below.

Market approaches for innovation and access to medicines: Challenges and opportunities

What lessons can be learned from market-based approaches to providing medicines and healthcare in low- and middle-income settings? What are the challenges and future opportunities? These were the key questions raised at an event organised by UNITAID, UNAIDS and the Medicines Patent Pool at the High Level Meeting on AIDS in New York on 9 June.

Read the full article on UNAIDS website

Geneva, 8 June 2011 — Brazil, one of the founding members of UNITAID, has passed a law authorizing an annual contribution to UNITAID based on the equivalent of US$ 2 for each passenger boarding an international flight on national soil.

The law, ratified by President Dilma Roussef on 31 May, guarantees long term funding to UNITAID's programmes and confirms Brazil's continuing commitment to the international agency devoted to scaling up access to treatment for HIV/Aids, Malaria and Tuberculosis through market based approaches.

Diagnostics key to the HIV/AIDS Response

Geneva, 1 June 2011 — In the lead-up to the United Nations High Level Meeting on AIDS, next week, UNITAID today releases a landmark report revealing that innovative technologies to test and monitor HIV/AIDS could soon be within reach of the world’s poorest regions.   HIV/AIDS Diagnostic Landscape maps the development and imminent coming to market of a wide range of simple, cost-effective technologies adapted for use at “point of care” in poor health systems and rural areas by non-specialised healthcare workers.

Geneva, 27 May 2011 – UNITAID welcomes the G8's recognition of UNITAID's efforts to expand access to treatment and in particular the invitation for "the voluntary participation of patent owners, private and public...” in the Medicines Patent Pool.

Partnership to Reduce ARV Prices will Yield Savings of at Least $600 Million Over 3 Years.

Boston, MA; Geneva; and London, 17 May 2011 – Today, the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), UNITAID, and the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) announced further price reductions on key antiretroviral (ARV) drug regimens used to treat HIV/AIDS in the developing world. This announcement represents the latest in a series of price reductions on ‘next-generation’ ARVs that have been accomplished through the collaborative efforts of the three organizations. Since 2008, this partnership has achieved price reductions that will generate global savings of at least US$ 600ⁱ  million over the next three years, making HIV treatment more widely accessible. With new research published last week proving that treating people with AIDS immediately not only keeps them alive but is also an effective tool to prevent transmission, making ARVs more affordable can save countless lives.

World Malaria day — 25 April

Geneva, 21 April 2011 — As one of the leading partners in the fight against malaria, UNITAID is committed to continuing efforts to scale up access to essential malaria commodities in endemic countries. To date, UNITAID has invested US$ 330 million in 32 countries, mainly in Sub-Saharan African, successfully delivering 47 million malaria treatments and 20 million protective nets.

Predictable Funding Means More Sustainable Impact on Markets and Patients' Access to Treatment

Geneva, 1 April 2011 — UNITAID’s second largest donor, the United Kingdom, has signed a three year pledge of  US$ 250 million (£159 million) to UNITAID for the 2011-2013 period.  The agreement follows a review carried out by the United Kingdom of its main multilateral beneficiaries. 
"We are grateful to the UK for this important multi-year pledge," said Jorge Bermudez, UNITAID Executive Secretary.  "And we welcome the multilateral aid review's positive results and recommendations for improvement in the future."

UNITAID's largest donor country, France, had last November pledged a yearly sum of USD 150 million (EUROS 110 million) for the next three years in a bid to strengthen the agency's capacity to continue to impact on medicines markets for better patient access.

"What this means is that UNITAID is now in a better position to create market space for much needed but so far little available health commodities in the 94 countries where it operates," said Philippe Douste-Blazy, Chair of UNITAID's Executive Board.  "Long term funding is crucial for sustainable impact."

Multi-year commitments from donors are at the core of the UNITAID business model. Funding predictability allows the agency the negotiating leverage with companies to spur the development of adapted medicines and lower the price of health commodities for AIDS, TB and malaria.

At present, total commitments to UNITAID stand at $337.437  million for the current year.