WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom said that (today) December 1 is the 33rd World AIDS Day. In the past decade, significant progress has been made in the fight against AIDS. Since 2010, the number of new HIV infections has fallen by 23%, and the number of AIDS-related deaths has fallen by 39%. A record 26 million people are receiving antiretroviral treatment, but the growth rate has dropped, leaving 12 million people living with HIV untreated.

Tedros Adhanom, Covid-19 has had a profound impact on people living with HIV. There is evidence that people living with HIV are at increased risk of developing new coronary pneumonia or being seriously ill or dying. In addition, a World Health Organization survey of 127 countries found that more than a quarter of HIV-infected people’s antiretroviral treatment has been partially affected. With the support of the World Health Organization and health and community workers, the number of countries reporting interruptions in AIDS medical services has fallen by nearly 75% since June.

According to data released by the United Nations AIDS Programme (UNAIDS), in 2019, there were approximately 1.7 million new HIV infections worldwide and 690,000 deaths from AIDS-related diseases. Of the 38 million people living with HIV, 12.6 million still do not have access to life-saving treatment.

In addition, a report recently released by UNICEF shows that in 2019, nearly 320,000 adolescents and children were infected with HIV, and 110,000 adolescents and children died of AIDS. About every 100 seconds, a child under the age of 20 is infected with HIV.