Assembly/AU/Dec.194 (XI) Page 1 DECISION ON THE PROGRESS REPORT ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE COMMITMENTS OF THE MAY 2006 ABUJA SPECIAL SUMMIT ON HIV/AIDS, TUBERCULOSIS AND MALARIA (ATM) DOC.ASSEMBLY/AU/4 (XI) The Assembly: 1. TAKES NOTE of the Progress Report on the Implementation of the Commitments of the May 2006 Abuja Special Summit on HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria (ATM); 2. WELCOMES the Malaria Initiative launched by the United Nations (UN) Secretary General and the appointment of a UN Special Envoy on Malaria; and REQUESTS the AU Commission to work closely with the Envoy in the implementation of the Malaria Elimination Campaign launched by the African Union; 3. CONCERNED that HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis (TB) and Malaria remain major development challenges and thus require sustained political will and commitment in order to reverse their impact; 4. DEPLORES the high costs of medicines for these diseases, and NOTES WITH CONCERN the increasing challenges associated with resistance to the medicines and insecticides; 5. ACKNOWLEDGES the particular susceptibility of women, children and other vulnerable groups to HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria; 6. URGES Member States to implement their pledge to devote at least fifteen percent (15%) of their national budget to health in order to adequately address health and development, especially HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria; 7. ALSO URGES Member States to strengthen health systems in the framework of the Africa Health Strategy (2007-2015) as the best approach to promote universal access to HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria services by 2010; 8. FURTHER URGES Member States to strengthen their respective disease surveillance capacities for effective monitoring and evaluation and to prepare progress reports to the AU organs and other constituencies;