UNAIDS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR SPEECH: Opening of the 45th meeting of the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board

Good morning,

Members of the Programme Coordinating Board,

Ministers,

Ambassadors,

Friends and colleagues,

Let me start by thanking the millions of people living with and affected by HIV for their inspiring leadership in the fight for health and social justice for the past 40 years. I would like to thank each of you for your continued solidarity with this struggle.

It is a privilege to serve the UN, and be part of this unique UN Board—one that explicitly includes communities and civil society. I feel honoured that you have all placed your faith in me, to lead UNAIDS.

I am joining an iconic movement that began with gay men in the USA and Europe and then spread to Africa and all over the world. A movement of people claiming their right to life, to health, as equal citizens. Women holding families and communities together, caring for the sick and raising orphans. Courageous communities whose activism led to this Joint Programme. The movement has made huge advances. But now we must step up the pace, because we know that in any race, the last mile is always the hardest.

We need a new approach. We have made enormous progress, for which we should be proud

Compared with a decade ago, the number of new HIV infections has declined. AIDS-related deaths have fallen dramatically

A total of 24.5 million people around the world are on HIV treatment—more than double the number in 2012.

On the 90–90–90 cascade, four out five people living with HIV know their status, 78% of people living with HIV who know their HIV status are on treatment and 86% of people who are on treatment are virally suppressed

But despite the progress, the world is not on the trajectory that we committed to at the United Nations General Assembly in 2016, and the end of 2020 is less than 13 months away.

In 2018, 770 000 people died of an AIDS-related illness. We are not getting treatment to the people who need it the most, including people living with HIV and tuberculosis (TB). We must address this inequality. It cannot be right that some people get treatment and live long lives, while others die.

People are starting treatment but are not supported to stay on treatment. They are labelled “lost to follow up”, when in fact the system is failing them. HIV prevention is so off-track that the world will not reach our target of a 75% reduction in new HIV infections by the end of 2020. While we have seen impressive reductions in new HIV infections in some countries, in others new infections are increasing. Read more via UNAIDS