Together for the future: report on the Tenth International AIDS Conference, Yokohama, Japan
Delaney, M.G.
Aidslink Eastern Central and Southern Africa 1994(29): 1 3
1994
ISSN/ISBN: 0856-3969 PMID: 12319325 Document Number: 297995
More than 11,000 researchers, activists, and health practitioners from 130 countries assembled in Yokohama, Japan, for the Tenth International Conference on AIDS. Involving 30 plenary sessions, 32 round table sessions, 580 abstract sessions, and 2700 poster sessions, this was the first of the annual international conferences on AIDS to be held in Asia, where the HIV epidemic is expected to explode in the next few years. As host of the conference, Japan demonstrated its commitment to contributing to the global fight against the HIV/AIDS pandemic by sending its highest officials. The features of the epidemic in Asia received considerable attention. Speakers pointed out that AIDS and HIV infection are spreading rapidly throughout Asia. By the year 2000, the majority of new HIV infections will occur in Asia, with 42% of the total in India, Thailand, and Myanmar. Scientific concerns dominated a large portion of the conference, but the socioeconomic impact of the pandemic as well as international collaboration, advocacy, and other topics were also explored. The solid contributions made by nongovernmental organizations against HIV/AIDS was recognized and supported in the conference.