World losing ground against HIV

Montreal, Canada | Xinhua | Global HIV community leaders on Friday warned that the world is losing ground against HIV in the opening day of the 24th International AIDS Conference, known as AIDS 2022.

More than 9,500 in-person and nearly 2,000 virtual participants were registered to attend the fully hybrid AIDS 2022 which takes place from July 29 to Aug. 2 in the Canadian city of Montreal with the theme of “re-engage and follow the science”.

“In the face of duelling pandemics, we are coming together to celebrate the resilience of our community and incredible advances in HIV prevention, treatment and cure research,” said Adeeba Kamarulzaman, the International AIDS Society (IAS) President and International Co-Chair of AIDS 2022.

“But let’s be clear, we have lost ground over the past two years and the most vulnerable have been hit hardest. That is why we’re bringing together the worlds of research, policy and activism at AIDS 2022 to restore momentum in the global HIV response. To overcome HIV, we must re-engage and follow the science,” Kamarulzaman said.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) also warned of faltering global response to HIV. “There were 650,000 AIDS-related deaths last year, a life lost every minute despite effective HIV treatment and tools to prevent, detect and treat opportunistic infections. Leaders must not mistake the huge red warning light for a stop sign,” UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima said.

“What we need to do is not a mystery. We know it from what we’ve repeatedly seen succeed across different contexts: shared science, strong services and social solidarity. We can end AIDS by 2030. But the curve will not bend itself. We have to pull it down, together,” Byanyima said.

Citing the 2022 UNAIDS Global AIDS update, titled “In Danger,” Byanyima shared that about 1.5 million new HIV infections occurred in 2021, over one million more than the global targets.

The report revealed that an adolescent girl or young woman acquires HIV every two minutes. The UNAIDS report also showed that the number of people on HIV treatment increased more slowly in 2021 than it has in over a decade. Other indicators of faltering progress included the fact that only 52 percent of children living with HIV have access to life-saving medicine.