Bill Gates to stop Funding Programmes for Controlling HIV/AIDS

Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates who visited India in March 2011 with his wife Melinda Gates decided to stop funding programmes aimed at controlling HIV/AIDS. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation funded HIV prevention programmes in India for nine years. Gates on 24 March 2011 made it clear that there will be no large funding by the Foundation for the programme inspite of T Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad asking him to continue supporting the next phase of National AIDS Control Programme. Gates mentioned that the initiative funded by the foundation has been a success and that the larger part of the funding has already been done. He also stated that the ongoing work in this respect will henceforth be funded by the Indian government.

Avahan, an initiative to reduce the spread of HIV was launched in 2003 with support of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It had begun work in India with a commitment of $200 million. The financial aid was increased by the foundation to $258 million and then to $338 million in 2009. The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) had entered into a memorandum of understanding with Avahan in 2009 to reaffirm commitment to HIV prevention as well as to mark the beginning of transition of Avahan’s projects to NACO and other partners.