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UNAIDS report: The urgency of now – AIDS at a crossroads.

22 July 2024. Related: Conference reports, Treatment advocacy, .

Simon Collins, HIV i-Base

On 22 July 2024, to coincide with the opening of the AIDS 2024 conference, UNAIDS released a new 300-page comprehensive report projecting the likelihood of reaching global health goals by 2030, and on the importance of planning beyond.

“The HIV response is at a crossroads. Whether the world ends AIDS depends on the path that leaders take. The path that ends AIDS is not a mystery. It is a political and financial choice.”

Winnie Byanyima, UNAIDS Executive Director

This report shows that countries can fulfil their commitment to ensure 40 million people living with HIV have access to effective treatment and that further new infections can be prevented.

It includes new data and analyses of progress towards the 2025 targets and stresses the urgency of plans to sustain the gains beyond 2030.

A 24-page executive summary is also available in English, French, Russian and Spanish.

The report also highlights the summary points below.

Progress towards 2025 goals

  • Mixed results at the halfway mark to the 2025 impact targets with some progress on HIV treatment and poor results for prevention and societal enablers. The world is off track to meet the 2025 targets for new infections and AIDS-related deaths.
  • The urgency of now is that significant gaps remain in access to HIV prevention and treatment services that need to be filled.
  • Unfair laws, discrimination and violence must be stopped to ensure access to treatment and prevention for all.
  • Integration has the potential to improve outcomes for other health and social services, however financing and resources overall are insufficient.

Taking a sustainable response to 2030 and beyond

  • Now is the time to invest in 2025 targets and build a sustainable response for 2030 and beyond.
  • If the 2025 targets are met, UNAIDS projects potentially 29 million people living with HIV in 2050. Countries must ensure services and systems are in place for people living with HIV to be able to lead quality and healthy lives.
  • If the 2025 targets are not met, UNAIDS projects that there will still be 1.4 million new HIV infections in 2030, far from the target of 200,000.
  • UNAIDS projects potentially 46 million people living with HIV in 2050 if further efforts are not made to ensure people living with, at risk of or affected by HIV can access HIV prevention and treatment.

References

UNAIDS. The urgency of now: AIDS at a crossroads. Geneva: Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS; 2024. Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO. (22 July 2024).
https://crossroads.unaids.org/ (webpage)
https://crossroads.unaids.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Executive-Summary-eng.pdf (24-page executive summary – direct PDF in English)
https://crossroads.unaids.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/crossroads.unaids.org-full-report.pdf (Full 300-page report: direct PDF download)

Links to other websites are current at date of posting but not maintained.