The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) is issuing countries with a stark wake-up call.
In a new report, launched yesterday in Paris, France, at an event co-hosted with Coalition PLUS, UNAIDS warns that the global response to HIV is at a precarious point.
At the halfway point to the 2020 targets, the report, “Miles to go—closing gaps, breaking barriers, righting injustices,” warns that the pace of progress is not matching global ambition. It calls for immediate action to put the world on course to reach critical 2020 targets.
“We are sounding the alarm,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “Entire regions are falling behind, the huge gains we made for children are not being sustained, women are still most affected, resources are still not matching political commitments and key populations continue to be ignored. All these elements are halting progress and urgently need to be addressed head-on.”
New HIV infections are rising in around 50 countries and global new HIV infections have declined by just 18% in the past seven years, from 2.2 million in 2010 to 1.8 million in 2017.
Although this is nearly half the number of new infections compared to the peak in 1996 (3.4 million), the decline is not quick enough to reach the target of fewer than 500 000 by 2020.
In the Caribbean, there were an estimated 310,000 people living with HIV at the end of 2017. Almost three of four (73%) people living with HIV in the region were aware of their status. Of all people living with HIV, 57% were on treatment and 40% were virally suppressed.
This level of treatment coverage contributed to a 23% decline in AIDS-related deaths in the region between 2000 and 2017. But to reach the targets that will set the Caribbean on track to end AIDS, the region must close the gaps in testing and treatment.
