"The global HIV/AIDS epidemic, through its devastating scale and
impact, constitutes a global emergency and one of the most
formidable challenges to human life and dignity, as well as to
the effective enjoyment of human rights, which undermines social
and economic development throughout the world and affects all
levels of society— national, community, family — Declaration of
Commitment UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS, In
2002, UNFPA was designated as the "convening agency" on HIV/AIDS
issues related to young people and to condom programming for
UNAIDS. This designation formalizes the Fund’s leadership in
HIV/AIDS policy advice and strategic guidance, and requires the
Fund to serve as a system-wide resource for the United Nations.
UNFPA has taken steps to ensure that work among the UNAIDS co-
sponsors in these two areas is coordinated, complementary and
synergistic. Efforts are under way to map out what each agency
is doing at the global and regional levels, and to develop,
collect and assess po