News outlets report on musician and philanthropist Bob Geldof’s comments at the 20th International AIDS Conference.

Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Bob Geldof slams wealthy countries over ‘disgraceful’ lack of HIV funding
“Musician and activist Sir Bob Geldof has called for more foreign aid funding from wealthy countries, including Australia, to defeat the spread of HIV in the developing world…” (Peake, 7/24).

The Guardian: Bob Geldof takes swipe at Australia’s foreign aid cuts
“…In a question-and-answer session at the AIDS 2014 conference in Melbourne, the Irish singer-songwriter, activist, and co-founder of Live Aid said he was dismayed by the refusal of Australian government to invest in foreign aid…” (Davey, 7/24).

Sydney Morning Herald: Bob Geldof slams Australia over cuts to foreign aid
“…His comments come after Australia slowed its ‘official development assistance’ or ODA as part of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)…” (Medew, 7/24).

Thomson Reuters Foundation: Geldof says Australia aid cuts could have helped HIV battle
“…Geldof told scientists and activists at a global AIDS conference in Melbourne that what they had achieved in the 30 years since the epidemic started was ‘staggeringly brilliant.’ ‘The scandal underlying this is the preposterous reluctance to fund the last mile,’ he said to applause…” (Nguyen, 7/24).

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VOA News: U.S. Ambassador Calls for LGBT Rights
“The U.S. ambassador to Australia said it should not be a crime to be a member of the LGBT community. Ambassador John Berry told the 20th international AIDS Conference that the fight against the disease cannot be won by relegating segments of the population to the shadows…” (DeCapua, 7/23).

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NPR: Legalizing Prostitution Would Protect Sex Workers From HIV
“If prostitution were legal around the world, the transmission of HIV among female sex workers would go down by at least a third, according to a paper presented at the International AIDS Conference in Melbourne, Australia. … Goats and Soda spoke to Dr. Kate Shannon, director of the Gender and Sexual Health Initiative of the BC Center for Excellence in HIV/AIDS in British Columbia, and lead author of published in the July 22 journal The Lancet…” (Brink, 7/23).

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Inter Press Service reports from the Girl Summit in London, where the United Nations has called for an end to child marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM).

Inter Press Service: Focus on Child Marriage, Genital Mutilation at All-Time High
“As Tuesday’s major summits here and in London focused global attention on adolescent girls, the United Nations offered new data warning that more than 130 million girls and women have experienced some form of female genital mutilation, while more than 700 million women alive today were forced into marriage as children…” (Hotz, 7/23).

Inter Press Service: ‘Zero Tolerance’ the Call for Child Marriage and Female Genital Mutilation
“Heightening their campaign to eradicate violence against women and girls, United Nations agencies and civil groups have called for increased action to end child marriage and female genital mutilation…” (McKenzie, 7/23).

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News outlets report on recent comments from Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, about public health in Africa and polio in Nigeria.

Mail & Guardian: Africa’s growth path: Reduce diseases, Bill Gates cautions
“Unless Africa dramatically decreases its rates of malnutrition and premature mortality, it will not achieve the productivity levels necessary to compete in the global marketplace, according to U.S. philanthropist and Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates. He was speaking at the Addis Ababa University on Wednesday, where he received an honorary doctorate…” (Malan, 7/24).

Reuters: Nigeria may have no polio cases next year, says Bill Gates
“Nigeria could cut the number of polio cases to zero next year and be declared free of the disease in 2018 even though a national eradication campaign has had to contend with an insurgency in the north, Bill Gates told Reuters…” (Blair, 7/24).

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Associated Press: U.N. humanitarian chief calls for aid revamp
“The U.N.’s top humanitarian official called Thursday for major changes in the delivery of relief, as funding falls short because of a growing number of conflicts and disasters…” (7/23).

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Reuters: Panel’s report likely to tie farm antibiotics to human resistance
“A White House advisory committee is expected to acknowledge the link between antimicrobial resistance in humans and livestock being fed antibiotics when it issues its report in the next few weeks, according to the transcript of a committee meeting held earlier this month…” (Huffstutter, 7/23).

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Huffington Post: World Health Organization Calls For Decriminalizing Personal Drug Use
“The World Health Organization came out publicly, if quietly, in support of the decriminalization of personal drug use in a report released last week. The 159-page report, which focused primarily on HIV prevention and care worldwide, included a brief section discussing ‘good practice recommendations concerning decriminalization.’…” (Ferner, 7/23).

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Devex: Roger Thurow: Global malnutrition is a challenge to the worldwide economy
“…[S]ome countries with 30-50 percent stunting rates due to childhood malnutrition have seen their gross domestic product knocked down between five and 15 percent, according to Roger Thurow, a senior fellow on global agriculture and food policy at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs,” who spoke with Devex Impact reporter Adva Saldinger in a video interview (7/24).

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PBS NewsHour: ‘There are no safe places’ for children in Gaza, UNICEF officer says
“Gwen Ifill talks to Pernille Ironside of UNICEF, who is in Gaza, about the toll the Israeli military offensive is having on civilians, and especially on children, the damage to infrastructure, as well as the capabilities of UNICEF to provide aid without safe humanitarian access…” (7/23).

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Australia Network News: Papua New Guinean revivalist churches push dangerous campaign for ‘faith-healing’ of AIDS
“Revivalist churches in Papua New Guinea are promoting prayer as a substitute for medication to those with HIV, according to human rights groups. … The mainstream churches in PNG are working with the United Nations and non-government organizations to help people access services…” (Cochrane, 7/23).

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Reuters: GSK seeks approval for world’s first malaria vaccine
“GlaxoSmithKline (GSK.L) said on Thursday it is applying for regulatory approval for the world’s first vaccine against malaria, designed for children in Africa…” (Kelland, 7/24).

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As part of its #FeedingDev and #MDGMomentum series, Devex has published several opinion pieces discussing food security.

Devex: Food security and nutrition in Africa’s cities
Ambassador William Garvelink, senior adviser for global strategy at the International Medical Corps

“…The renewed emphasis on agriculture, especially since the G8 L’Aquila Summit pledges in 2009, has made great strides in improving food security and nutrition for the rural poor in sub-Saharan Africa. But with the shift of food insecurity and malnutrition to the cities, it is incumbent on the international community to acknowledge that these are no longer just rural concerns. They are serious urban problems requiring immediate attention, innovative solutions and financial support…” (7/24).

Devex: The MDGs have made ending hunger by 2030 possible
Mary Ellen McNish, president and CEO of The Hunger Project

“…Our experience at The Hunger Project tells us that [the post-2015 development agenda] should center around five basic strategies, which will help us end hunger and poverty and ensure a future of self-reliance and dignity for all people, especially the rural poor: 1. Start with women; 2. Mobilize communities; 3. Engage local governments; 4. Use a holistic, coordinated approach; [and] 5. Work in partnership with others. Using these fundamental strategies within the framework of the MDGs has enabled us to see incredible progress in many areas…” (7/23).

Devex: Nutrition and health: The opportunity cost of opportunities lost
Joel Spicer, president of the Micronutrient Initiative

“…We know that the effectiveness of many public health interventions is compromised by poor underlying nutritional status. Children must start life with their basic nutrition needs met and their development potential protected. More must be done to ensure vulnerable people receive health and nutrition services in the most integrated way possible. We can and must eliminate missed opportunities in the spaces between nutrition and health, and nutrition and other sectors” (7/23).

Devex: The nexus of agriculture and nutrition
Claire Starkey, creative strategist and agricultural consultant

“…Just as important as the foods one eats are safe water and good sanitation. The increased availability of healthy foods is as much about expanding household purchasing power as it is about selecting and growing nutritious crops. Agricultural programs that increase small-holder yields and incomes are now universally recognized as potential contributors to healthier families and children, and are able to exponentially increase effectiveness when nutrition activities are integrated…” (7/23).

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Huffington Post: For a Better World for All
Babatunde Osotimehin, UNFPA executive director, and Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, U.N. under-secretary-general and U.N. Women executive director

“…Recognizing that these practices cannot be justified on the grounds of religion or culture, there is a growing number of countries with ‘zero tolerance’ of FGM and child, early, and forced marriage. … This week, to capitalize on this momentum and build on the progress made, experts and campaigners from across the world are meeting in London for the first ever Girl Summit. U.N. agencies, governments and non-governmental organizations will commit to take action with affected communities to create a world where every girl is free to be a girl, to go to school, and to reach her full potential — a better world, not just for girls and women, but for all” (7/23).

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Huffington Post: Food Supplies for Refugees in Cameroon Dangerously Low
William Lambers, author and blogger

“By taking action now we can save refugees from starvation in Africa. This includes over 100,000 war victims from the Central African Republic (CAR) who have fled to Cameroon. Tragically, funding for humanitarian aid is low at a time when people need it the most. … We have to stay ahead of the famine in Africa. If we don’t act now, lives will be lost. We have to make sure the pipeline of food remains flowing to people on the brink of starvation” (7/22).

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Devex: USAID: A history of U.S. foreign aid
Devex presents a new interactive series “that explores the history of USAID, its administrators, and U.S. foreign aid” (July 2014).

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Global Health Technologies’ “Breakthroughs”: Senate shows strong support for global health R&D in defense appropriations bill and report
Marissa Chmiola, communications officer at GHTC, discusses a Senate Department of Defense appropriations bill and report that shows strong support for global health research and development efforts. “…GHTC is glad to see the Senate recognizing DoD’s critical role in global health R&D, as well as advocating for sustained funding and improved coordination for global health R&D programming at DoD…” (7/23).

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AIDS.gov blog: Conversations from AIDS 2014: Mary Mahy, UNAIDS
Miguel Gomez, director of AIDS.gov and senior communications adviser at the Office of HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease Policy at HHS, discusses the release of the UNAIDS Gap Report and speaks to Mary Mahy of UNAIDS on “what its findings mean for the global HIV/AIDS community” (7/23).

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The Center for Global Health Policy’s “Science Speaks” is live-blogging this week from the AIDS 2014 conference in Melbourne, Australia.

Science Speaks: AIDS 2014: PrEP is a beginning with new prevention technologies in the works
“Kenneth Mayer of the Fenway Institute and the Harvard School of Public Health offered a comprehensive look at HIV prevention technologies to conference delegates at the opening plenary on Thursday while underscoring the critical behavioral underpinnings associated with making them effective in preventing HIV infection…” (Lubinski, 7/23).

Science Speaks: AIDS 2014: Financing the new global HIV treatment vision — advocacy and economics
Arin Dutta, senior economist with the Futures Group’s Health Policy Project, and Ron MacInnis, deputy director for HIV for the project, write in a guest post about the “90-90-90 by 2020” treatment vision presented by UNAIDS (Lubinski, 7/23).

Science Speaks: AIDS 2014: Activists hold die-in to protest high price of Gilead’s hepatitis C drug
“Activists surprised Gilead corporate executives today with a ‘die-in’ to protest the pricing of Gilead’s hepatitis C drug, Solvaldi (sofosbuvir)…” (Lubinski, 7/24).

Science Speaks: AIDS 2014: ‘What good are interventions if we live like we have a gun to our heads?’
“Laurindo Garcia, a gay man living with HIV in the Philippines offered a moving conclusion to the opening plenary in Melbourne on Thursday, speaking to gay and transgender communities’ limited access to lifesaving services…” (Lubinski, 7/24).

Science Speaks: AIDS 2014: Men who have sex with men and transgender women have risks and resilience
“During the opening plenary [Thursday], Beatriz Grinszteijn offered insights about men who have sex with men and transgender women, echoing many of the themes raised in this conference…” (Lubinski, 7/24).

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Open Society Foundations: End AIDS by 2030? Not at This Rate.
Ralf Jürgens, director of the Open Society Law and Health Initiative, argues for the incorporation of human rights initiatives into HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment programs (7/23).

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New Security Beat: Addressing Reproductive Health and Rights in a Post-MDG World Begins With Inequality
Sarah Meyerhoff, contributor to New Security Beat, discusses two Lancet articles on the impact of reproductive health rights and climate change on sustainable development (7/23).

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Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria: Global Fund News Flash
Issue 46 of the Global Fund News Flash includes articles on the 20th International AIDS Conference and the “second window” for reviewing applications for funding (7/24).

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International AIDS Conference: Stepping Up The Pace
The AIDS 2014 Media Centre is updated daily with press releases and conference highlights, including the Daily Bulletin and a press briefing available on the official conference YouTube channel. For information on upcoming AIDS 2014 sessions and speakers, download the Daily Programme Highlights document (.pdf) (7/24).

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