Key findings

According to the report, there were 39.9 million people in the world living with HIV, and of those nearly 40 million people, almost a quarter — 9.3 million — are not receiving life-saving treatments. This means a person dies from AIDS-related causes every minute.

However, AIDS-related deaths have declined significantly in recent years. The report found that around 630,000 people died of AIDS-related illnesses in 2023, down from 2.1 million deaths in 2004.

The report also found that the majority of new HIV infections last year occurred in countries outside of sub-Saharan African for the first time, with infections dropping 56% from 2010.

'At a crossroads'

The report said that the world is "at a crossroads" in its efforts to tackle HIV and AIDS, and that key actions are needed to further reduce new infections and deaths.

"World leaders pledged to end the AIDS pandemic as a public health threat by 2030, and they can uphold their promise, but only if they ensure that the HIV response has the resources it needs and that the human rights of everyone are protected," said UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima. "Leaders can save millions of lives, prevent millions of new HIV infections, and ensure that everyone living with HIV can live healthy, full lives."

The report found that if world leaders take the actions necessary to ensure sufficient and sustainable resourcing and protecting human rights, the number of people living with HIV will drop to around 29 million by 2050.

"Countries are making enormous progress to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030, however there have been many challenges that could slow our efforts," said Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. "We must do everything we can to be continually vocal and proactive. Failure is not an option here. In fact, it is unthinkable. If we all work together, we shall meet our common goal. I for one will continue to work with all of my strength to make sure that we do indeed end the AIDS epidemic and I implore all of you to commit to the same."

The report says that countries need to increase resources dedicated to preventing HIV infections and specifically target those resources to populations most likely to be affected by the disease. UNAIDS' calculations found that just 2.6% of total HIV spending went toward interventions for key populations last year.

Generally speaking, funding is shrinking as well, the report found. In 2023, total resources available for HIV were at $19.8 billion, down 5% from 2022 and $9.5 billion short of the $29.3 billion of resources needed by 2025.

Sharon Lewin, president of the International Aids Society, said the report shows that countries that commit to managing their epidemics "even in the poorest parts of the world, can indeed lower HIV infections."

"That is very exciting and inspiring," she added. "The flipside of that, is that the infections outside sub-Saharan Africa might be more challenging to get on top of." (UNAIDS press release, 7/22; Lay, The Guardian, 7/22; Lederer, Associated Press, 7/23)

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