Anglican Communion News Service

All African Anglican Conference on HIV/AIDS

Boksburg

13 August 2001

I have a huge and humbling  sense of the uniqueness of this occasion. Here under one roof we have a variety of people, ranging from people living with HIV/AIDS, to caregivers, representatives of the donor nations, UN AIDS,  pharmaceutical companies, the ecumenical community and the global Anglican community.

This follows soon after the recent UN session which declared HIV/AIDs a global emergency and indicated that 75 percent of  infected people live in sub-Saharan. Against this backdrop I am delighted to note that every country in the sub-Sahara Africa  is represented here today.

It is a Kairos moment which requires us to deal with the pandemic once and for all.  We have been greatly encouraged by the enthusiasm and  support we have received for this initiative thus far. We hope it will carry us through this conference and lead us to renewed  commitment and a release of energy towards the development of an integrated, holistic and sustainable  response to the pandemic.  Ultimately, we must achieve a generation without AIDS.

We have an alarming tendency to be dazzled by statistics and a great need to put a human face to the people who are infected or affected by AIDS.  Our God-given responsibility as stewards of His creation is to care for the well being of our fellow humans.  The greatest contribution each of us can make in life is to make a difference in another person's life.

It is actions, not words, that count the most and every little thing we do matters.

We hope that out of this workshop will emanate creative partnerships among all the stakeholders and I want to encourage you with a reminder that we have at our disposal the God-given gifts of technology, knowledge, skills and other resources to turn vision into reality.

Let us also carry with us over the next few days Clem Sunter's reminder that there are only two kinds of people in the world: Those infected with HIV/AIDS and those affected by HIV/AIDS.

It is my pleasure to welcome you all and my prayer that each of us will make a difference.