Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response - World AIDS Day 2025
The theme of this year's World AIDS Day is “Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response."
The commemoration of World AIDS Day, which will take place on 1 December 2025, is an important opportunity to highlight the impact that the funding cuts from international donors have had on the response to AIDS as well as to showcase the resilience of countries and communities stepping up to protect the gains made and drive the HIV response forward.
In 2025, a historic funding crisis is threatening to unravel decades of progress. HIV prevention services are severely disrupted. Community-led services, vital to reaching marginalized populations, are being deprioritized while the rise in punitive laws criminalizing same-sex relationships, gender identity, and drug use is amplifying the crisis, making HIV services inaccessible.
The global AIDS response has been upended in recent months but there is still much more to be done to achieve the SDG target of ending AIDS by 2030. AIDS is not over and given today’s environment, a new transformative approach is needed to mitigate risks and help us reach our targets.
Countries must make radical shifts to HIV programming and funding. The global HIV response cannot rely on domestic resources alone. The international community must come together to bridge the financing gap, support countries to close the remaining gaps in HIV prevention and treatment services, remove legal and social barriers, and empower communities to lead the way forward.
Political leadership is paramount to advancing policies that address structural inequalities and protect vulnerable populations. Transformative solutions are needed to improve access to HIV services, eliminate stigma and discrimination once and for all, and ensure the protection of rights for women, girls, and LGBTQ+ people, who continue to face disproportionate barriers in accessing healthcare.
“In a time of crisis, the world must choose transformation over retreat,” said Ms Byanyima. “Together, we can still end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030—if we act with urgency, unity, and unwavering commitment.”
This World AIDS Day, join us in calling for sustained political leadership, international cooperation, and human-rights-centred approaches to end AIDS by 2030.