The global AIDS epidemic

Around 2.7 million people became infected with HIV in 2008. Sub-Saharan Africa has been hardest hit by the epidemic; in 2008 over two-thirds of AIDS deaths were in this region.
The epidemic has had a devastating impact on societies, economies and infrastructures. In countries most severely affected, life expectancy has been reduced by as much as 20 years. Young adults in their productive years are the most at-risk population, so many countries have faced a slow-down in economic growth and an increase in household poverty. In Asia, HIV/AIDS causes a greater loss of productivity than any other disease. An adult’s most productive years are also their most reproductive and so many of the age group who have died from AIDS have left children behind. In sub-Saharan Africa the AIDS epidemic has orphaned nearly 12 million children.
In recent years, the response to the epidemic has been intensified; in the past ten years in low- and middle-income countries there has been a 6-fold increase in spending for HIV and AIDS. The number of people on antiretroviral treatment has increased, the annual number of AIDS deaths has declined, and the global percentage of people infected with HIV has stabilised.
However, recent achievements should not lead to complacent attitudes. In all parts of the world, people living with HIV still face AIDS-related stigma and discrimination, and many people still cannot access sufficient HIV treatment and care. In America and some countries of Western and Central and Eastern Europe, infection rates are rising, indicating that HIV prevention is just as important now as it ever has been. Prevention efforts that have proved to be effective need to be scaled-up and treatment targets reached. Commitments from national governments right down to the community level need to be intensified and subsequently met, so that one day the world might see an end to the global AIDS epidemic.