Health Minister Kyaw Myint of Myanmar signed an agreement that will allow the United Nations to carry out a five-year initiative designed to curb the spread of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in the country. Charles Petrie, U.N. country coordinator for Myanmar, expects the new 3-Diseases Fund, which has the backing of Australia, Britain and a number of European nations, to “become operational early next year.” The deal allows the U.N. Office for Project Services to appoint a U.N. project manager and establish an office to oversee the fund. Petrie said the organization got an assurance from the government that “this is a programme to which they attach high importance.”
Source: New $100 mln fund to fight killer diseases in Myanmar (Reuters)