New HIV infections have come down 17% over the last eight years, UNAIDS and WHO reported today.

This finding, reported in the 2009 AIDS epidemic update, is good news.

New infections were down by about 400 000 in sub-Saharan Africa last year, about 15% lower than in 2001 when the UN Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS was signed.

But HIV is rising again in some countries, according to the report.

More people are living with HIV than ever before, an estimated 33.4 million worldwide – with about 5.5 million in South Africa.

“To better connect the 33.4 million people living with HIV and the millions of people who are part of the AIDS response”, UNAIDS has launched a free social networking site, called AIDSspace.org.

UNAIDS executive director Michel Sidibé said today: “The good news is that we have evidence that the declines we are seeing are due, at least in part, to HIV prevention.

“However, the findings also show that prevention programming is often off the mark.”

Over the past five years the number of AIDS-related deaths has declined by over 10%, with antiretrovirals saving some 2.9 million lives, the report indicated.

Dr Margaret Chan, Director- General of WHO said: “International and national investment in HIV treatment scale-up has yielded concrete and measurable results. We cannot let this momentum wane.

“Now is the time to redouble our efforts, and save many more lives.”
Sidibe said: “AIDS isolation must end. Half of all maternal deaths in Botswana and South Africa are due to HIV.

“This tells us that we must work for a unified health approach bringing maternal and child health and HIV programmes as well as tuberculosis programmes together to work to achieve their common goal.”

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