Burmese officials have signed an agreement with the United Nations for the creation of a 99 million dollar fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in the southeast Asian country.
Ministers from Burma's military government signed a memorandum of understanding Thursday with UN officials in Rangoon.
The program, known as the Three Diseases Fund, is financed by donations from the European Union, Australia, Britain, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. It will be administered by the United Nations.
The fund is designed to replace the UN- administered Global Fund Program, which pulled out of Burma last year after complaints the Burmese government was hindering its work.
Relief officials say the new fund is designed to funnel aid directly to non-governmental agencies instead of through the Burmese government.
Information for this report is provided by AP.
