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The goal of ending AIDS by 2030 may be achievable according to the latest United Nations AIDS report (UNAIDS), and while many countries have made great strides in ending their HIV epidemics, some countries and entire regions may have blocked their progress.
A total of 38 million people are currently living with the virus to date. In eastern and southern Africa, 20.6 million people are living with HIV, but only 16 million people currently have access to treatment.
Southern Africa has the heaviest burden of HIV according to the report and the most vulnerable groups are often the most affected by recurrent crises, facing increased poverty, food insecurity and vulnerability to HIV.
Young women in sub-Saharan Africa continue to be the most affected by the virus, as six of the seven new HIV infections among adolescents aged 15 to 19 in the region are among girls. AIDS-related illnesses are the leading cause of death among women in this age group.
June marks four decades since the first cases of AIDS were documented and to mark this milestone, the United Nations General Assembly’s high-level meeting on AIDS was held in New York and practically this week.
A South African organization, Mothers2Mothers (M2m), attended the high-level meeting and said it urged world leaders to ensure they turn the declaration into action so that the goal of ending to AIDS by 2030 can be achieved.
M2m, which was founded in Cape Town two decades ago, trains and employs women living with HIV as frontline health workers in ten African countries.
The organization’s president and CEO, Frank Beadle de Palomo, said the UNAIDS report shows that progress to end AIDS in children has stalled.
“For the first time in over a decade, we are seeing a slight increase in new HIV infections among children in sub-Saharan Africa. 130,000 new infections were reported in children in 2020, a slight increase from the 126,000 new infections reported in 2019.
This new data on the data proves that progress in ensuring that a new generation begins life HIV-free has stalled, possibly due to service disruptions due to Covid-19, ”he said. declared.
In 2016, world leaders gathered at the United Nations General Assembly and set ambitious goals for 2020, with the goal of ending AIDS by 2030, as called for in the Sustainable Development Goals.
Now, five years later, the UNAIDS 2020 report shared promising statistics that may suggest that goals to end AIDS by 2030 may be achievable.
Here are some of the positive statistics from the report:
* Globally, there were 690,000 deaths from AIDS-related causes, a decrease of 55% from 2001 to 2020.
* In 2020, approximately 84% of people living with HIV knew their status and 73% had access to antiretroviral therapy.
* In East and Southern Africa, the number of new HIV infections has fallen by 43% and the number of AIDS-related deaths has fallen by 50% over the past decade.
* Of the 37.6 million people living with HIV globally in 2020, around 27.4 million people were on treatment, a number that has more than tripled since 2010.
* The report found that the global roll-out of HIV treatment has averted an estimated 16.2 million AIDS-related deaths since 2001.
The UNAIDS report shows that the best performing countries against HIV are those with progressive laws and strong, inclusive health systems.
In these countries, people living with HIV / AIDS are more likely to have access to quality HIV treatment, testing, pre-exposure prophylaxis, follow-up and care supplies.
UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima said the best performing countries have reversed their epidemics and saved lives with adequate funding, genuine community engagement and multisectoral approaches.
The same approaches to tackling the inequalities needed to end AIDS will also help the world overcome Covid-19, be prepared to face future pandemics “to support inclusive economic growth, social stability, human rights for all.” We will all do better, ”she said.
There are three bold changes that must be made to end AIDS, Byanyima said, they are to end inequalities in access to health technologies, access to essential services and end inequalities in health. realization of rights, especially for people living with and affected by HIV.
“We cannot be neutral on inequalities. To get back on track in the fight against AIDS, we have to be deliberate to deal with it, ”she said.
HIV remains a pandemic due to inequalities and Covid-19 may have amplified many of these inequalities, according to the UNAIDS report. Those left behind are those who suffer from gender inequalities, ostracism and criminalization.
“Gender inequalities and gender-based violence restrict the rights of women and adolescent girls, including their ability to refuse unwanted sex or to negotiate safer sex, and to access sexual and reproductive health services related to sex. HIV, ”the report says.
African News Agency
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