New WHO director makes AIDS a top priority

Jong-Wook Lee, the newly elected director of the World Health Organization, plans to make the fight against HIV/AIDS his top priority for the organization, including helping more people in developing nations to gain access to antiretroviral drugs, The Boston Globe reports. WHO aims to provide anti-HIV drugs to at least 3 million HIV-positive people in poor nations by 2005. As one of his first acts as WHO's director, Lee appointed Paulo Teixeira, head of Brazil's HIV/AIDS program, to formulate WHO's overall HIV/AIDS strategy. Teixeira spearheaded the development of a nationwide HIV/AIDS plan in Brazil that has been touted as a model for other developing nations. Lee also said WHO officials will begin to work more closely with health authorities throughout the world to better coordinate local HIV/AIDS prevention, education, and treatment efforts.