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4w ago

UNAIDS Warns of Global HIV/AIDS Crisis Following US Aid Freeze

The abrupt halt of US foreign aid threatens to reverse decades of progress, with millions of lives at risk and a resurgence of the AIDS pandemic projected.

UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima delivers remarks on the impact of US budget cuts on global HIV response during a press conference at the United Nations offices in Geneva on March 24, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP) (Photo by FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images)
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UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima said the withdrawal of US support was having a 'devastating impact'
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Overview

  • UNAIDS projects 6.3 million additional AIDS-related deaths and 8.7 million new infections globally over the next four years if US aid is not restored.
  • The US, historically the largest donor to global HIV/AIDS efforts, contributed 35% of UNAIDS' core budget in 2024 before the freeze was implemented in January 2025.
  • The funding freeze has resulted in widespread clinic closures and health worker layoffs, severely disrupting HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment programs worldwide.
  • UNAIDS has proposed a licensing deal for the HIV prevention drug lenacapavir as a potential solution, emphasizing the urgent need for innovative approaches to sustain progress.
  • European donors have indicated they cannot fill the funding gap, leaving UNAIDS to advocate for immediate restoration of US aid to prevent a return to 1990s-level AIDS pandemic conditions.