The conference has traditionally been held in Moscow, under the leadership of the Russian Government, and with support from UNAIDS, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS Tuberculosis and Malaria (The Global Fund) and the International AIDS Society as international co-chairs of the conference organizing committee.

The purpose of the third EECAAC 2009 conference is to strengthen regional cooperation, and join efforts towards fighting HIV/AIDS and achieving the goal of Universal Access to HIV prevention, treatment and care.

The EECAAC 2009 conference recognizes that universal access includes not only the essential biomedical interventions, but also social justice and human rights considerations that are necessary to overcome stigma and discrimination and reach the most-at-risk target groups including young people and people who use drugs.

Officials from the Eastern Europe and Central Asia, NGOs and international organizations, working with HIV/AIDS and others are participating at the three-day conference.

The theme for the conference is “Regional cooperation. Join the Efforts for Universal Access”, the organizer said. EECAAC 2009 presents a unique opportunity for Eastern Europe and Central Asia to review progress in achieving Universal Access by 2010, and set priorities for the region with special emphasis on prevention among target groups, while taking into consideration peculiarities of the epidemic in each country.