July 2023

EGPAF Responds to New UNAIDS Report on The Path That Ends AIDS

EGPAF President and CEO: ‘Now is the Time for an AIDS-free Generation’

WASHINGTON, D.C. – 13 July 2023 – A new report released today by UNAIDS affirms that there is a clear path that ends AIDS, but political will and financial investment are necessary to maintain current gains and meet the goals to end AIDS by 2030.  

The report, ‘The Path that Ends AIDS,’ contains data and case studies that highlight that ending AIDS is a political and financial imperative, and that the countries and leaders who are already following the path towards health equity are achieving extraordinary results. 

In response to UNAIDS’ new report, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) President and CEO Charles “Chip” Lyons issued the following statement: 

“Today’s UNAIDS report affirms something EGPAF has long known: there is a path to end pediatric AIDS. 

“We know what works. Eswatini, the United Republic of Tanzania, and Zimbabwe – three countries in which EGPAF currently works – have already achieved the ‘95-95-95′ targets. That means 95% of the people who are living with HIV know their HIV status, 95% of the people who know that they are living with HIV being on lifesaving antiretroviral treatment, and 95% of people who are on treatment with suppressed viral loads.  

“The path forward is clear. As noted in the report, the path to an AIDS-free generation is anchored in health equity. The success of this approach requires strong political leadership, enhanced local solutions, and sustainable financial investment. Progress has been strongest in areas that have the most financial investments, including in eastern and southern Africa where new HIV infections have dropped by 57% since 2010. Progress has also been strengthened in areas that have legal and policy frameworks that enable and protect human rights – not undermine them. 

“But more needs to be done. Unfortunately, progress in the fight against pediatric AIDS has stalled and disparities between adults and children continue. No country with a high HIV burden has reached the 95-95-95 target for children. Approximately 130,000 children were newly infected with HIV and 43% of the 1.5 million children (about the population of West Virginia) who were known to be living with HIV were not receiving treatment in 2022. While AIDS-related deaths in children have been reduced dramatically since their peak of 360,000 in 2004, approximately 84,000 children still died from AIDS-related complications in 2022. 

“Now is the time. We have the tools. We have science. We have the solutions. What we do not have is the sustained political will and financial investment needed to end AIDS by 2030. HIV funding declined in 2022 from both international and domestic sources, falling back to the same level as in 2013. In addition, as the new UNAIDS report cited, funding amounted to US$ 20.8 billion in 2022, which is far short of the US$ 29.3 billion needed by 2025 to keep us on track to end AIDS in children, youth, and families by 2030.  

We echo UNAIDS in its call urging the world’s leaders to join the journey to end AIDS by 2030. Now is the time for us all to end the world’s deadliest pandemic and finally walk towards an AIDS-free generation.” 

 

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Read the report: The Path That Ends AIDS 

Schedule an interview: To speak with EGPAF CEO Charles “Chip” Lyons or other EGPAF experts, contact Daniel Pino at dpino@pedaids.org.  

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About the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) 

EGPAF is a proven leader in the fight for an AIDS-free generation and has reached over 31 million pregnant women with services to prevent transmission of HIV to their babies. Founded in 1988, EGPAF has supported over 15,000 sites and currently works in 19 countries to offer HIV counseling, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment services alongside high-quality family health care. Each stage of life—from infancy to adulthood—brings new and different challenges, and EGPAF is driven to see a world where no other mother, child, or family is devastated by this disease. For more information, visit pedaids.org.