In Geneva, Fréchette calls for greater cooperation in tacking challenges

By bringing together United Nations agencies, civil society and the business sector, the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) shows what the entire UN system can and should be, Deputy Secretary-General Louise Fréchette said today.

Addressing UNAIDS's first Global Staff meeting in Geneva, which brought together more than 300 of its employees, she reviewed the broad challenges facing the UN today and the need to continue pursuing reform.

"UNAIDS is a great example of what the United Nations can and should be. It is a unified voice heard loud and clear around the world," she said, as she underlined Secretary-General Kofi Annan's deep personal commitment to the fight against the pandemic.

"We all need to be a little humble in terms of what we can accomplish unless there is grassroots support. Unless we connect with the people our impact would not be felt," she added.

Following her address, staff members from different regions commented on their day-to-day work meeting the challenges of helping HIV/AIDS sufferers face stigma and discrimination, build coalitions and, sometimes, cope with conflict situations.