YOUNG women and girls still constitute the largest proportion of new HIV infections with indications that every week, around 5000 young women aged 15–24 years become infected with HIV, according to the UNAIDS Global AIDS Statistics Fact Sheet.
By Staff Reporter
According to the report, in sub-Saharan Africa, six in seven new HIV infections among adolescents aged 15–
19 years are among girls. Young women aged 15–24 years are twice as likely to be living with HIV than men. Around 4200 adolescent girls and young women aged 15–24 years became infected with HIV every week in 2020.
More than one third (35%) of women around the world have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner or sexual violence by a non-partner at some time in their lives. In some regions, women who have experienced physical or sexual intimate partner violence are 1.5 times more likely to acquire HIV than women who have not experienced such violence.
In sub-Saharan Africa, women and girls accounted for 63% of all new HIV infections in 2020. In 2020, 84% [67– >98%] of people living with HIV knew their HIV status. Among people who knew their status, 87% [67– >98%] were accessing treatment. And among people accessing treatment, 90% [70– >98%] were virally suppressed. Of all people living with HIV, 84% [67– >98%] knew their status, 73% [56–88%] were accessing treatment and 66% [53–79%] were virally suppressed in 2020.”
UNAIDS estimates that US$ 29 billion (in constant 2019 United States dollars) will be required for the AIDS response in low- and middle-income countries, including countries formerly considered to be upper-income countries, in 2025 to get on track to end AIDS as a global public health threat.
“At the end of 2020, US$ 21.5 billion (in constant 2019 United States dollars) was available for the AIDS response in low- and middle-income countries—around 61% was from domestic sources.”
Meanwhile, in 2020, key populations (sex workers and their clients, gay men and other men who have sex with men, people who inject drugs, transgender people) and their sexual partners accounted for 65% of HIV infections globally:
AIDS-related deaths have however been reduced by 64% since the peak in 2004 and by 47% since 2010. In 2020, around 680 000 [480 000–1 million] people died from AIDS-related illnesses worldwide, compared to 1.9 million [1.3 million–2.7 million] people in 2004 and 1.3 million [910 000–1.9 million] people in 2010. AIDS-related mortality has declined by 53% among women and girls and by 41% among men and boys since 2010.
