Welcome Remarks at the Inception Workshop for RETA 6321
Astoria Plaza, Pasig City, Philippines
2 July 2007

Hon. Ethelyn P. Nieto
Undersecretary of Health

Mr. Thomas Crouch
Director, Philippines Country Office, ADB

Dr. Vincent de Wit
Principal Health Specialist, Social Sectors Division
Southeast Asia Department, ADB

Ms. Emiko Masaki
Project Officer, SESS, ADB

Dr. Vicente Salas
Team Leader, PRIMEX

Distinguished Guests, Members of the Consultant Team, Ladies and Gentlemen

On behalf of our two NGO associates, Action for Health Initiatives (ACHIEVE) and Remedios AIDS Foundation (RAF), I welcome you to the Inception Workshop of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Regional Technical Assistance for Fighting HIV/AIDS in Asia and the Pacific – Subproject 5: Strengthening Country Response to HIV/AIDS among High-Risk Groups (otherwise known as RETA 6321).

This Project aims to improve the effectiveness of the national and local response to the HIV and AIDS epidemic among intravenous drug users (IDUs) and overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and provide support to the Department of Health (DOH) in developing more feasible approaches and/or interventions for these groups at risk.

PRIMEX, ACHIEVE, AND RAF are pleased to have been given by ADB this opportunity to work with DOH, through the National Center for Disease Prevention and Control (NCDPC), in the implementation of this important, interesting, and highly challenging project.

We commenced activities a month ago, on the 4th of June to be exact, and within that one month period, we believe that we have made good progress towards moving the Project forward. We had a very productive Project Scoping, Visioning, and Teambuilding (PSVT) Workshop with DOH and ADB last 13 June 2007 at the Conference Room of the ADB Philippines Country Office. We had several meetings with DOH, UNAIDS, WHO, the Tropical Disease Foundation (TDF) – the principal recipient of the Global Fund on HIV/AIDS, TB, and Malaria – and other key stakeholders. We submitted our Inception Report to ADB and DOH on 25 June, merely three weeks after mobilization of our Team. And today, here we are, at this Inception Workshop to formally launch the Project in your presence.

This Workshop, the first in a series of national consultations under this Project, is intended to inform the stakeholders about the Project and lay the groundwork for the establishment of linkages and information exchange between the Project and those of the stakeholders.

In other words, you are here because you are considered as major stakeholders and/or partners of DOH in this Project. You are here because we value your knowledge, experience, and insights. And we need your cooperation, collaboration, support, and assistance as we implement the planned activities over the next 18 months.  

We thank you for accepting our invitation to this Workshop and we look forward to a strong partnership with you towards strengthening the Philippine response to HIV/AIDS among IDUs and OFWs.

Mabuhay at Magandang umaga sa inyong lahat!

Cognizant of the importance of effective stakeholder participation and a strong sense of ownership of Project results, In line with this participatory approach, a series of national workshops will be held with relevant DOH officials, ADB, and representatives of different stakeholder groups to assess the current HIV/AIDS situation, identify major problems/constraints and opportunities for improvement, suggest solutions or remedies to identified problems, and prepare specific, concrete proposals for harm reduction and HIV prevention among IDUs and OFWs, respectively. The first of these national workshops is an Inception Workshop (IWS).