UNAIDS warns of major setbacks in global HIV response, calls for renewed solidarity

GENEVA: A new report released by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) warns that the global HIV response has suffered its most significant setback in decades, urging reliance on solidarity, resilience, investment and innovation to achieve the goal of ending the AIDS epidemic.

Titled "Overcoming Disruption, Transforming the AIDS Response," the report highlights the severe impact of reduced international funding and a lack of global solidarity on HIV prevention efforts.

Abrupt cuts to international HIV aid in 2025 have worsened existing funding gaps, said the report, citing an estimate from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development that indicates external health assistance is expected to fall by 30-40 per cent in 2025 compared with 2023, which will lead to immediate and increasingly severe disruptions to health services in low- and middle-income countries.