World AIDS Day was celebrated on Dec 1st 2016 across the world. The theme was
HandsUp for #HIVPrevention.
The campaign #HIVprevention explores various aspects of HIV prevention and how they relate to specific groups of people such as young women and adolescent girls, key populations and people living with HIV. The Joint UN programme on HIV-AIDS (UNAIDS) hosted a special event on 30th Nov 2016 to observe the day.
The commitment to move forward and end AIDS epidemic by the year 2030 was also voiced as part of SDGs.
A report entitled
“Get on the Fast Track: The Life Cycle Approach to HIV” by UNAIDS shows countries getting on the fast track, with 1m people accessing treatment in 6 months from January to June 2016.
The report was launched on 21 November 2016 in Windhoek, Namibia, by the President of Namibia, Hage Geingob and the Executive Director of UNAIDS, Michel Sidibé.
By June 2016, around 18.2 million people had access to the life-saving medicines, including 910000 children.
If these efforts are continued and amplified, the world will be on track to achieve the target of 30 million people on treatment by 2020.
About World AIDS Day- Conceived in 1987.
- Proposed by : Public information officers of WHO, James Bunn and Thomas Nette.
- In 1996, UNAIDS started functioning. It took over planning and promotion of World AIDS day.
- First World AIDS Day: 1988
Some statistics on AIDS
- 18.2m people: Accessing antiretroviral therapy (June 2016).
- 36.7m people: Living with HIV(2015).
- 2.1m people: Newly infected with HIV(2015).
- 78m people: Infected with HIV since start of epidemic (2015).
- 35m people: Died from AIDS related illness since epidemic began (2015).
