Will we rise to #endAIDS challenge or stumble withering away the gains in HIV response?
SHOBHA SHUKLA - CNS
We have all the scientifically proven tools to end AIDS. It is about ensuring that these tools reach people who need them the most, through a sustainable HIV response, so said Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman, the well known infectious diseases expert form Malaysia and a former President of International AIDS Society (IAS). She was speaking at the plenary of the 10th Asia Pacific AIDS and Co-infections Conference (APACC 2025) in Tokyo, Japan.
The world is indeed at the crossroads, in terms of the global response to HIV today. The Asia Pacific region has 3/4 of the world's population and 6.7 million people living with HIV. The region accounts for almost a quarter of the annual new HIV infections globally (23%), making it the world's second-largest HIV epidemic after Eastern and Southern Africa.
The recent funding cuts by the US have further exacerbated the problems. UNAIDS projects that there would be an additional 6.6 million new HIV infections and 4.2 million deaths by 2029 just because of the shortfall created by US funding cuts. Impact of an international HIV funding crisis on HIV infections and mortality in low-income and middle-income countries is so unacceptable if we take into account the promise of SDGs by all governments worldwide.
"So, will the world rise to the challenge, to make the future response affordable, or will we stumble, throwing away the progress of the last two decades and creating a drain on future resources of countries?" wondered Eamonn Murphy, Regional Director, UNAIDS for the Asia Pacific and Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
Speaking at APACC 2025, Murphy called for prioritising four other dimensions of sustainability- political leadership, enabling laws and policies, element of services and solutions and having proper systems in place, apart from financial stability.
HIV prevention as cornerstone of sustainable HIV response
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