Dear friends, I am sitting here in Zimbabwe in front of my computer thinking about the ASAP team who are currently in Bangkok organizing the The Asia-Pacific Women4GF Workshop – I wish I was with the group and could reconnect with the great energy that we had when we were together in Paris – I am sure it will be another great meeting and another huge step toward building a movement of organized and able women in all our diversity.
Since we were last together the Global Fund Board had it’s 30th meeting in Geneva, where the Executive Director Mark Dybul emphasized the importance of doing more on gender equality. Even members of the donor bloc spoke about gender. This is new!! And so great – I want more! Our work has just begun – we are making gender dynamics visible and we need to sustain this momentum and turn this into action so that it does not remain rhetoric.
As you know Women4GF was launched whilst we were all in Paris. People are coming to this site and are interested to know more about all of us. We hope W4GF is a space to mobilise more action so that the Global Fund resources go where they are most needed and where they will change lives. Those of us who start this idea share a hope to live in a world where no woman, is marginalised because of their HIV status, age, gender or profession and women in all our diversity are able to access services and treatment we need.
Some of you said that in one month from the meeting you would do the following:
- share the meeting outcomes and plan with constituencies back home and leverage all national and global Global Fund contacts and establish the entry points
- add people to the GCTA list – has this happened?
- review your national strategic plan and figure out the gaps
- get involved in the Global Fund replenishment drive – we have heard from one of you that you are fully included in the discussions and pushing China for more money!
- understand the country process which is just getting going