The global AIDS epidemic shows no signs of abating. Five million people became infected with HIV worldwide and 3 million died this year alone – the highest ever. The findings are featured in “AIDS Epidemic Update 2003,” a comprehensive new report on the global HIV/AIDS epidemic issued today by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization (WHO) in advance of World AIDS Day, commemorated on 1 December.

UNAIDS welcomes the decision of the South African Government to provide antiretroviral treatment on a national scale to people living with HIV in the country. The new South African national initiative will make that country’s fight against AIDS truly comprehensive, with treatment complementing prevention efforts. Its implementation will bring hope for millions of people living with HIV and their families.

UNAIDS today welcomed draft legislation introduced by the Canadian government that would amend the country’s patent laws to allow drug makers to manufacture and export lower-cost generic medicines to developing countries.

Harvard University, the World Economic Forum and UNAIDS hosted the first ever meeting of business, government and civil society in China discussing the potential role of partnerships to combat HIV/AIDS in China. Calling on all stakeholders to increase their efforts, the meeting highlighted the future economic impact of AIDS and its relevance to the business community.

At the opening of the 11th International Conference for People Living with HIV/AIDS, UNAIDS and WHO stressed that stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS must be eradicated as a critical component of expanding access to treatment and care.

UNAIDS applauds today’s agreement between the Clinton Foundation and four generic pharmaceutical companies -- Aspen Pharmacare Holdings, Cipla, Ranbaxy Laboratories, and Matrix Laboratories -- to dramatically lower the price of HIV/AIDS treatment in the developing world. This builds on the Clinton Foundation’s work with the governments of several countries in Africa and the Caribbean to develop plans to strengthen their health care systems.

A consensus agreement on how to significantly scale up the global response to the millions of children orphaned and made vulnerable by AIDS marks critical progress, according to the heads of UNICEF and UNAIDS who were speaking at a high-level meeting involving key international partners working to address the complex and far-reaching impacts HIV/AIDS is having on millions of children and adolescents orphaned by the disease. Eight out of ten live in sub-Saharan Africa, adding to the millions of children orphaned due to conflicts and other causes. Donors, UN agencies and international non-governmental organizations participated in the two-day talks.

Nelson Mandela launched a worldwide music-led campaign, 46664, in London to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS in Africa, and to call on citizens around the world to pressure their governments to respond to AIDS as an international emergency.

On World Food Day, when attention is drawn to the more than 800 million hungry people across the globe, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) announced that the World Food Programme (WFP) has joined UNAIDS as a Cosponsor. Together with the eight existing Cosponsors, WFP will strengthen the UN’s response to the growing HIV/AIDS epidemic, which claimed over three million lives last year alone.

GENEVA, 7 June 2013—The Joint United Nations programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) welcomes the recent announcement by the World Health Organization (WHO) that for the first time a non-surgical device (PrePex™) has been pre-qualified for the purpose of adult male circumcision for HIV prevention.

There is compelling evidence that medical male circumcision reduces sexual transmission of HIV from women to men by 60%. WHO and UNAIDS urge countries with high HIV prevalence and low levels of male circumcision to expand access to safe, voluntary medical male circumcision as part of their HIV prevention efforts. 

However, many countries are facing challenges in scaling up voluntary medical male circumcision as for HIV prevention, in particular due to the shortage of surgically trained and skilled providers to perform the current conventional surgical procedure.

In comparison to the surgical procedure, PrePex™ does not routinely require injectable anaesthesia or suturing, and safe use has been demonstrated by appropriately trained physicians and mid-level providers with surgical back-up as needed.

“This kind of innovation that may contribute to improving efficiency, access, and safety, while increasing demand for voluntary medical male circumcision is very welcome,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “It could have a significant impact on HIV prevention efforts in areas with high HIV prevalence and low levels of male circumcision if uptake increases.”

Since voluntary medical male circumcision programmes for HIV prevention started in 2007, an estimated 2 million men have undergone circumcisions for HIV prevention in Eastern and Southern Africa. UNAIDS estimates that voluntary medical male circumcision has the potential to prevent an estimated 1 in 5 new HIV infections in the region by 2025. However, programmes will need to be significantly scaled-up to maximize public health impact.

Medical male circumcision provides partial protection to men from heterosexual transmission, and WHO and UNAIDS recommend that it be firmly placed in a combination approach to prevent HIV infection that includes the correct and consistent use of male and female condoms; a reduction in the number of sexual partners; the promotion of safe sexual practices such as avoidance of penetrative sex; treatment for sexually transmitted infections; and the provision of antiretroviral therapy for people living with HIV who are eligible for treatment.