We have the
history
to change the
future

UNAIDS begins coordinating UN bodies and global responses to HIV and AIDS.

The biggest rise in new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths is seen in sub-Saharan Africa where community activism pushes pharmaceutical companies to make medicines accessible and affordable.

40 million people are living with HIV globally in 2002, with over 71% in sub-Saharan Africa, according to UNAIDS. For the first time in a decade, AIDS-related deaths begin to fall, with reductions in vertical transmission of HIV from mothers to their children.

UNAIDS sets ambitious treatment targets: 90% of people living with HIV know their diagnosis, those 90% should be on antiretroviral therapy and 90% of those on ARTs should be virally supressed by 2020. Countries outside the US begin rollout of oral PrEP, a new HIV prevention medication, following delays on granting competitive pricing and licenses.

Innovative, new HIV prevention options – the dapivirine vaginal ring and injectable HIV PrEP – are introduced, but rollout is slow and limited to a few countries. COVID-19 exacerbates existing inequalities, leaving marginalised communities without access to lifesaving vaccines. Anti-rights movements threaten to roll back decades of progress on HIV, gender and sexual equality amidst increasing human rights violations.