WORLD AIDS DAY 2016
Tochukwu Ibe
Every year on December 1, the world observes World AIDS Day. On this Day, the global community pays tribute to all those who have lost their lives to AIDS, applauds progress made in responding to the epidemic and recommits to ending it definitively.
In this connection, millions of people come together across the globe every year with renewed hope and determination, standing up for adherence to the human rights and empowerment of people living with HIV and those left behind and importantly also for the intensified application of pure and social sciences for ending the epidemic.
The devastating economic, social and psychological costs of the HIV/AIDs pandemic have been well-documented by now.
It is, therefore, satisfying to note that partly as a result of the galvanizing impact of the yearly observance of the World AIDS Day, countries have made tremendous progress over the past years towards controlling the AIDS epidemic.
Recent evidence shows that since the first cases of HIV were reported in the early 1980s, about 78 million people have become infected with the disease and about 35 million have died from AIDS-related illnesses.
This is no doubt a tremendous human toll but the momentum of new infections has been slowed down measurably over the past few years.
In June 2016, it was estimated that 18.2 million people living with HIV worldwide were receiving life-saving antiretroviral therapy, of which 10 million were in Eastern and Southern Africa. This shows that the majority of cases are located in these two regions of Africa.
However, recent evidence also indicates that despite the progress made in the fight against HIV/AIDs over the past 15 years, including the availability of proven prevention and treatment methods, the annual number of new HIV infections among adults has remained static, at an estimated 1.9 million a year since 2010.
This figure translates into new daily infection rates of 5,700 among adults and children, 66% of which live in sub-Saharan Africa.
The above figures also mean that globally, the decline in new HIV infections among adults has somewhat stalled. Moreover, there has been resurgence of new HIV infections among key population groups in many parts of the world.
All this calls for more action for evidence – informed interventions to reach those vulnerable populations and address challenges that might constrain easy access to HIV prevention, treatment and care services.
Based on this evidence, experts and scientists have decided to focus this year’s World AIDS day campaign on prevention with the theme: “Hands up for HIV Prevention”, with the aim of reducing new HIV infections.
As it can be seen from this year’s World AIDS Day theme, that calls on all Governments, stakeholders, donors and community members to increase the momentum against new infections, fresh commitments include more investments in scaling up HIV prevention programmes.
We believe that this is imperative if the AIDS epidemic is to be ended as a serious public health threat by 2030.
Last year, in September 2015, world leaders unanimously committed to ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals.
In addition, in June 2016, United Nations Member States adopted a progressive, new and actionable Political Declaration on Ending AIDS that contains a set of specific, time-bound targets that must be reached by 2020 in order to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030.
There is also source of hope from the fact that the scope of HIV prevention and treatment options has never been wider than it is today, and the world now has the requisite scientific knowledge and experience to reach people with options tailored to their lives in the communities in which they live.
The global theme of World AIDS Day 2016 is also inviting the global community to further reflect on what is needed to strengthen HIV prevention: for instance, through more condom use, voluntary medical male circumcision, prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV, pre-exposure prophylaxis, testing and viral suppression.
These fresh reflections should also include explorations of how to address the barriers that prevent adolescent girls and young women, who are in the most vulnerable periods of their lives, key population groups and people living with HIV, from accessing and using the new prevention commodities and services.
eric umoru
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