Leaders from several nations have launched a global initiative for an airline tax to raise money to fund treatment for deadly diseases in developing countries.
UN Secretary-General Kofi Anan, who welcomed the initiative during a conference on the sidelines of the General Assembly, praised the program as a “shining example of an innovative source of funding.”
A panel of supporters, comprised by leaders from Chile, France, and Norway, as well as former US President Bill Clinton, and the British and Brazilian foreign ministers, convened Tuesday to announce the initiative, known as UNITAID, or “united to aid,” according to a statement.
So far, 44 nations make up a pilot group that will institute a tax. Of those, only 18 countries are already ready to apply an airline tax. Specifics of the tax vary from country to country.
