Objective: To expedite the development of an effective AIDS vaccine for the developing world.

Commitment: Building on India's political leadership, to support and facilitate a Global Political Advocacy Initiative (GPAI) led by Southern countries of influence that will work together on AIDS vaccine research and put their political muscle behind vaccine advocacy as a crucial part of a comprehensive strategy to combat HIV/AIDS. IAVI commits to serve as technical advisor to the Ministers of Science and Technology of India, Brazil, and South Africa to accelerate the process of development of an AIDS vaccine. IAVI will endeavor to expand this coalition to incorporate a broader range of nations and champions;

Background: The ever-growing severity of the AIDS epidemic, particularly in the developing world, makes the need for immediate and decisive leadership on AIDS vaccines essential at all levels. The epidemic not only afflicts individuals, it compromises economic growth and entrenches poverty. To combat its toll, there is an urgent need to scale up the delivery of existing interventions, but equally to develop better options - new technologies, such as drugs and vaccines. Yet the world currently has no mechanism to support and accelerate the search for the life-saving health tools, the international public goods, so desperately needed. The private pharmaceutical companies, historically the developers of such technologies, have limited incentives to invest without the market prospects of the developed world. Publicly funded research agencies in high-income countries typically focus their attention on diseases in their populations and pay scant attention to diseases predominantly afflicting developing countries. They also do not have the mechanisms to effectively accelerate product development.

Partnership Opportunity: IAVI is a global not-for-profit organization working to accelerate the development of a vaccine to prevent HIV infection and AIDS. Founded in 1996 and operational in 23 countries, IAVI and its network of partners research and develop vaccine candidates. IAVI welcomes any opportunities for support up to $250,000 to cover the costs for its commitment - the Global Politcal Advocacy Initiative (GPAI).

Update:
December 2005:
In meetings with IAVI staff, strong support for a Global Political Advocacy Initiative and a commitment to make it a success were given by the Prime Minister of India, President and Vice-President of Uganda, and several Ministers in India, Brazil, Rwanda, and South Africa.

January – March 2006:
A record number of AIDS vaccine trials began or expanded during this period, including several countries that never before hosted clinical testing of an AIDS vaccine candidate, reflecting the powerful on-the-ground impact of the Global Political Advocacy Initiative.

1. IAVI commenced a multi-site Phase II trial of the Targeted Genetics AAV2 vaccine candidate at three sites in South Africa and Uganda; all approvals have been received to begin another arm of the trial in Zambia. This is the first Phase II AIDS vaccine trial in South Africa and the first AIDS vaccine trial in Zambia.
2. IAVI has commenced its first collaborative clinical trial with the NIH Vaccine Research Center (VRC). VRC’s decision to conduct a test of their DNA and Adeno 5 vector candidate at two of the sites that IAVI developed in Africa (Nairobi, Kenya and Kigali, Rwanda) is a tribute to the partnership that has been fostered with developing country researchers. This is the first AIDS vaccine trial in Rwanda. The project team at the Kigali site has had an active vaccine preparedness program for many years, including a model Voluntary Counseling and Testing program for a large cohort of HIV discordant couples (one HIV positive and one HIV negative partner). The NIH selected the site for a Phase I trial in 2004 based on the strengths of its clinical and laboratory practices that meet international standards.
3. IAVI commenced a trial of the Therion MVA vaccine candidate in Chennai, India at a new clinical trial center that IAVI built and equipped for state-of-the-art research. A year earlier, IAVI commenced a Phase I trial of the AAV2 vaccine candidate at a site in Pune, India. This was India’s first ever AIDS vaccine trial.