A new report from the United Nations’ HIV/AIDS programme suggests the world is “at a crossroads” if the global aim to eradicate the disease as a public health threat is to be achieved by 2030.
UNAIDS figures for 2023, released on Monday, show that despite concerted efforts to prevent the spread of the HIV virus and mitigate the impact of AIDS, “a person dies from AIDS-related causes every minute” across the globe.
“World leaders pledged to end the AIDS pandemic as a public health threat by 2030,” said UNAIDS director Winnie Byanyima ahead of the 25th International AIDS Conference, which opens in the German city of Munich on Monday.
“They can uphold their promise, but only if they ensure that the HIV response has the resources it needs and that the human rights of everyone are protected,” she stated.
Targets for new infections and deaths to be missed
Official figures show that around 1.3 million people acquired HIV in 2023, more than three times the interim target of 370,000 for 2025 set by world leaders in 2021.
Global deaths from complications due to AIDS have fallen from around 1.3 million in 2010 to 630,000 in 2023, as a result of the growing availability of antiretroviral therapy and other treatment programmes.
Nevertheless, the figure remains far above the interim target of 250,000 deaths in 2025.
Concern in Eastern Europe and Central Asia
Around 40 million people worldwide were living with the virus in 2023, the figures show, with almost one in four lacking access to life-saving treatment, especially in sub-Saharan Africa.
The region continues to be the centre of the pandemic, with the incidence of HIV among teenage girls and young women remaining “extraordinarily high,” even as efforts to contain the virus are gaining ground.
The report said that while “the global HIV prevention response is proceeding at an encouraging pace in sub-Saharan Africa,” it has “stalled in other regions,” with rates rising in three areas defined by UNAIDS: Latin America, the Middle East and North Africa, and Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
The situation in the latter category is particularly concerning, with deaths rising by 34% since 2010. All other regions have seen decreases over the same period, ranging from 57% in the Caribbean to 6% in the Middle East and North Africa.
Overall, AIDS-related deaths have fallen by 69% since the peak of the pandemic in 2004 and by 51% since 2010.
Stigmatization hampers fight against pandemic
The study found that discrimination and stigmatization of at-risk populations and vulnerable groups, including sex workers, transgender people and drug users, “create barriers to vital prevention and treatment services.”
HIV prevention and treatment services “will only reach people if human rights are upheld, if unfair laws against women and against marginalized communities are scrapped, and if discrimination and violence are tackled head on,” the report continued.
Funding for vital measures such as condom programmes and harm reduction services for drug users is being cut in many countries, with a significant impact on HIV transmission rates.
Governments must act now to speed up the effort against the global pandemic, said Byanyima.
“Leaders can save millions of lives, prevent millions of new HIV infections, and ensure that everyone living with HIV can live healthy, full lives,” she asserted ahead of the annual conference, which runs until Friday.
