KOLWEZI, LUALABA PROVINCE, DRC, 9 June 2025 — On Friday, June 13, during the closing session of the Governors’ Conference in Kolwezi, Lualaba Province, His Excellency President Félix Tshisekedi will launch the Presidential Initiative to End Pediatric AIDS in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

The launch of this bold initiative marks a renewed national commitment to addressing one of the most persistent and heartbreaking inequities in the country’s HIV response: children’s limited access to life-saving HIV treatment and prevention services.

Over recent decades, the DRC has made remarkable strides in rolling out HIV testing and treatment services nationwide. Today, an estimated 91% of adults living with HIV in the DRC are on antiretroviral therapy, thanks to strong collaboration between the government, civil society, affected communities, and key partners including PEPFAR, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, UNAIDS and its 11 co-sponsoring agencies, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF), the private sector, and others.

But progress for children has lagged behind. Only 44% of children living with HIV in the DRC currently receive treatment. This proportion has remained tragically low for a decade, with thousands of children still newly infected each year. These infections are mostly due to missed opportunities to test pregnant women, which would enable timely interventions to prevent mother-to-child transmission and keep mothers alive.

This gap underscores persistent challenges in the health system, including:

• Insufficient access to quality sexual and reproductive health services for women;
• Poor integration of HIV services within platforms for maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health;
• A fragile supply chain for essential medical commodities;
• Weak community systems and limited coordination between community actors and public services.

The Presidential Initiative to End Pediatric AIDS is a call for urgent and sustained action. It demands greater political leadership and accountability from Governors and provincial authorities, emphasizing the need for local solutions to local challenges. The initiative aims to:

1. Improve early HIV screening and quality of treatment for children, adolescents, and pregnant and breastfeeding women;
2. Prevent new HIV infections among children and mothers;
3. Ensure timely initiation of antiretroviral therapy for HIV-positive adolescents, pregnant and breastfeeding women;
4. Eliminate structural barriers that limit access to HIV screening and services for adolescents.

The five-year initiative, backed by at least USD 18 million in domestic funding, will complement existing national programs and investments, mobilizing localized efforts and innovations to close the pediatric HIV treatment gap in every province.

“At a time when global development financing is shifting and placing pressure on the systems that support our most vulnerable, the leadership of President Félix Tshisekedi in launching this initiative is a beacon of hope. UNAIDS salutes the President’s leadership and stands in full support of this bold and inspirational agenda,” said Dr Susan Kasedde, UNAIDS Country Director in RDC. 

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.